Stay (A Ryuunosuke and Rita Fanfiction)
by thatotakuerica
Summary: Rita Ainsworth has a secret, a severe medical problem, and the members of Sakurasao got to experience her terrible illness first hand. Akasaka Ryuunosuke is the most affected because he soon realizes Rita's illness is the same he lost his mother to. Find out if Sakurasou will ever be the same in this thrilling story.
1. Chapter 1

Me: Welcome to my first Ryuuri fanfiction!

Ryuunosuke: W.. W..W- What!

Rita: (giggling) What's wrong with

it.. babe? (kisses him)

Ryuunosuke: (faints)

Shiina: Is Dragon dead?

Misaki: Ryuuri power!(punches the air)

Me: YESSS!

Everyone except Ryuunosuke: YASSSSS!

Me: But this will be a pretty depressing story.

All of the girls: Aw...

Me: But don't worry, it will have a happy ending... sort of...

Erveryone: WHATT

It was a normal morning for Akasaka Ryuunosuke. He got out of bed and joined the others in the kitchen. He grabbed two tomatoes from the fridge and listened to what the others had to say.

Misaki Kamigusa was being the "normal" person she was. She rambled on about something to do with whales and lipstick. Mashiro Shiina was staring at the vast nothing before her, being her quiet, emotionless self. Sorata Kanda was casually talking to Nanami Aoyama about careers and school. Jin Mitaka was reading the newspaper, while half-smiling and listening to the outrageous girl next to him. The dorm teacher, Chihiro Sengoku was probably in her bedroom resting from her busy night out.

"Just a normal day.. " Ryuunosuke thought to himself. He looked around at the somewhat normal place he was in. Still, he had a feeling inside that something was going to go wrong today. As if the world read his mind, the doorbell rang. Misaki went to go answer it.

In a couple of seconds she began to scream, "RITA!"

Everybody except Ryuunosuke ran to greet her. Rita greeted everyone in delight, then ran to go search for Ryuunosuke. "I'm in the kitchen, Freeloader.", he said noticing that she couldn't find him. As soon as he said that, he regretted it. She came in and pounced on him, hugging and squeezing him in uncomfortable places.

"G..GET OFF ME!", he screamed, blushing profusely.

The others watched the two reunite, giggling. "I missed you Ryuunosuke!", the British girl said while squeezing him to death. Blushing more, Ryuunosuke yelled, "J..Just let go of me!" She did as he requested. Brushing himself off, he returned to his room. Walking up the stairs, he heard the former freeloader following him. "Hey! Stop following me!" He looked back at her. She had pouty eyes and stuck her bottom lip out, as if she was a dog begging for food. He was about to give in, but suddenly her expression changed. She started wobbling and shaking, she stared at the ground with fear and sadness in her eyes. She began breathing heavily.

"Hey.. Freeloader?"

She turned around and slowly made her way down the stairs, gripping the railing as if her life depended on it. When she reached the bottom of the stairs, she fell to her knees and clenched her stomach. Ryuunosuke quickly hurried down the stairs, and noticed that Rita was crying. She quickly turned her head away from him.

She barely got out, "I.. I don't want you to see me like this"

"Rita what's wrong!"

He rarely ever uses her real name, but in this situation, he knew he had to. However, there was no reply. Horrified, Ryuunosuke quickly got up and ran to inform the others.

"Hey! Something's wrong with Rita!"

The others gasped and quickly went back to where Rita was left, but shockingly she wasn't there. They frantically searched everywhere for her, when Ryuunosuke found her vomiting in a near-by trash can. Rita couldn't believe this was happening to her now, of all times, and the members of Sakurasao would probably find out her secret. She wished that nobody would ever see her like this, knowing how fatal it could be. Everyone ran to help her, however Ryuunosuke stood back with a frightened look on his face and maybe even tears forming in his eyes.

Me: First chapter done!

Jin: Wow, Erica, getting so deep already.

Misaki & Aoyama: (crying and hugging Rita)

Rita: Um.. this is just a fake story guys..

Shiina: Plan C?

Everybody: NOOOO!

Ryuunosuke: Erica, what illness does the freeloader have in this story?

Rita: Awwww are you worrying about me sweetheart? (brushing up against him)

Ryuunosuke : NE.. NEVERMIND! (shrinks into a little hole)


	2. The Problem

Me: YESSS This is going to be such a good chapter!

Ryuunosuke : No, it isn't.

Me: HOW DO YOU KNOW MR. SMARTY PANTS!

Ryuunosuke: Hacked.

Me: AGGHHH YOU...

Aoyama: Woah Woah Woah.. Calm down Erica, you have a story to finish.

Me: AAHAH yes maybe something can happen to you MR. SMARTY PANTS...

Rita: Please don't hurt my baby! (Jumps on him)

Ryuunosuke: Ah! G-G-Get off!

Rita : (hugs him tighter) (falls down to the ground)

Jin: Woah, things are getting heated.

Kanda: Hey Akasaka, you wouldn't believe how red your face is! I'm surprised you haven't fainted yet!

Rita: (kisses him on cheek)

Ryuunosuke: (faints)

Misaki: RYUURI POWER!

Everyone: YEAH!

Rita could feel the tears running down her face and dripping to the floor. She hated life right now. Why did this have to happen to her at this moment? She felt humiliated. Damn, she never got a break. She began vomiting and coughing up blood, while everyone around her was panicking. They were all asking her what was wrong, but she didn't have the strength to speak. As the time went on, she felt more and more dizzy. Soon, she couldn't even hear all of the chaos around her. Then as soon as she was about to loose consciousness, an ambulance arrived. The paramedics rushed in, and took the half-consicous girl away.

Everyone at Sakurasou was in total shock and had no idea what to do. It was a complete mess. They finally all decided to gather and talk about the unfortunate event that has happened.

It was silent for about 5 minutes, until Kanda started the conversation, "Shiina, do you know what is wrong with Rita."

The depressed girl shook her head. It was silent again. " Hey.. Ryuunosuke what exactly happened? ", Kanda asked. Akasaka Ryuunosuke stood away from the others. He stared at the ground. He didn't hear the question at all because of the millions of questions taking over his mind.

What has happened to her? Has this happened before but he just didn't notice? Did he do something to cause this something? Why did he feel so guilty?

He tried to be strong and stopped crying. He knew he had to do something. He grabbed his bag and ran to the hospital, wanting answers. The others called out to him, and followed. He wasn't athletic whatsoever , but right now he was as fast as a cheetah. He arrived in a speck of time. Panting, and trying to catch his breath, he approached the counter.

"He-ello... Can.. Can I see Rita A-Ainsworth?"

"No, sir, she requested for no visitors."

The frightened programmer cursed under his breath.

"Is.. is she alright?"

"We will see, sir"

He dreadfully made his way back over to the waiting room. Then, the other members of Sakurasao arrived. They rushed over to Ryuunosuke.

"S-She requested no visitors. The doctors don't know if she is alright yet."

They all went silent.

"We.. We can't just sit here and do nothing while are friend is hurt!", Aoyama said while sobbing.

"There's nothing we can do.", the black-haired male said.

Besides the crying, the next hour or so was silent. Then a nurse approached them.

"Miss Ainsworth would like to see only one person."

Everyone glanced around, then all stared at the programmer. He willingly stood up and followed the nurse down the hallway. When the nurse stopped at the room, Ryuunosuke slowly opened the door. As he entered, his heart sank heavily. He stared at the dead-like body before him. She had her many machines hooked up to her, an oxygen tube around her face, and even an IV attached at her arm. It killed Ryuunosuke to see her like this. Her eyes were closed, and she had a depressing expression stuck on her face. He noticed her hair wasn't as bright as it usually was. He then also realized that her body looked weak and frail. What it always like this, he wondered. He thought about how only this morning she was so enlightened to see him, and how she pounced on him, being her normal indecent self. He then looked down at the still body in front of him. Suddenly the girl opened her eyes, instantly regretting it when she realized who was staring back at her. She immediately turned her face to the opposite side of the boy.

"Look at me," Ryuunosuke commanded.

She slowly turned her head. He felt as if her teary blue eyes pierced him and stabbed him in the heart. Even though his gynophobia was holding him back, he got closer to her.

"Rita, what's wrong?"

It took a while for a response.

"It's just... just a little bit of anemia.."

His heart stopped at the familiar word. His eyes widened and he began trembling.

"A-A-Anemia..? "

The girl slowly nodded her head. Ryuunosuke's mind then drifted off into the memories of that same disease, and how it killed his mother.

Me: WOOT WOOT another chapter down!

Kanda: Another cliffhanger...

Misaki: Aw, Erica why does this have to be so depressing!

Me: Depressing=Entertaining

Ryuunosuke: That's not exactly true...

Rita: Yeah, maybe you should put a little mature content in here!

Ryuunosuke: NO!

Me: hmm...

Ryuunosuke: (faints)

Misaki: Wow Rita, you didn't even touch him! That's a new record!

Shiina: Power! (punches the air)

Everyone: (punches the air) Ryuuri forever!


	3. I'm Not Going Anywhere

Me: YAY another chapter!

Kanda, Jin, Misaki: Yes!

Ryuunosuke: Ha, you guys won't even be in this chapter.

Me: DAMN YOU STUPID HACKER!

Kanda: Why aren't we in this chapter!

Me: Sorry, didn't have room for you, too much Ryuuri going on...

Rita: YAY! (jumps on Ryuunosuke)

Ryuunosuke : (blushes) FREELOADER! STOP THAT!

Everyone: Hahahahahahahaaa

Rita: (pins his arms to the floor) You're mine now. (winks)

Jin: Teach him a lesson, Rita.

Me: Yeah, punish him for hacking.

Ryuunosuke: Oh boy..

Rita: (giggles) I can do that.. (makes out with him)

Ryuunosuke: (faints)

Shiina: Ryuuri power?

Everyone: Ryuuri power! (punches fists in air)

Ryuunosuke froze in terror. He mind went back to all of the memories of his mother 9 years ago. All of the memories he has forgotten. Visiting the hospital everyday. Countless days of no sleep. His mother coming home, and leaving again, always so suddenly. Those random attacks had always scared him.

He remembered that one day, she was at the hospital, she was days away from being dismissed. Then she had the biggest attack ever. He remembers waiting outside the door, while doctors were rushing in and out. He listened to the chaos. Finally after a long time, he was able to see her. He remembered the exact words she said to him.

"Ryuu, you're such a good boy.. I love you so much... never forget that..."

And with that, the heart monitor changed to a long death-defying beep. He screamed and cried forever, but nothing can make her alive again. Because he was so young, went to therapy, and he forgot everything that ever happened about his mother. Seeing Rita now, in the condition she was, reminded him of his mother.

"Ri-Ritaaaa", he whimpered while falling to his knees.

He could feel the tears streaming down his face. He felt his heart being crushed. His arms were wrapped around his body,

"Ritaaa..Anemia... Anemia killed my mother."

She gasped as her heart sank. Her eyes widened, and more tears escaped. She shivered at the thought of Ryuunosuke going through this and dealing with a death.

"Ryuunosuke... I-I'm so sorry."

He stood up. He wrapped his arms around her and cried on her shoulder. Rita placed her weak arms around his back and did as much comforting as she was breathing heavily.

"You'll.. You'll never leave me.. right?.."

"I will never leave you."

She has never seen Ryuunosuke cry this hard, and it absolutely broke her heart.

"Why.. Why didn't you tell us?", Ryuunosuke said shakingly.

"I.. I didn't want you guys to worry about me, or treat me differently. I know if I told you guys, I would get a lot of pity and I don't want any of that. I liked the way it was before, when everything was normal..."

He escaped from the hug.

Still in tears, the teenager proclaimed, "You might be right, but this makes me hurt even more! If you never told us, we would never be aware of what could happen! What if we weren't home when something happened! What if you randomly died in England and we never got to see you again! Do you even know how guilty I would feel? I.. I would... I would.. hate myself."

Rita gasped at his words. Trying to calm down she put her hand on his.

"I'm- I'm not going anywhere. I'm not going to die."

"You don't know that!", he yelled, while he covered up his face with his hands.

He began walking out the door, when Rita quietly said, "I'm not going to die... because I love you too much."

He kept walking out, he didn't want to turn around because he was blushing too much, more than usual. He closed the door on his way out, and leaned against it. He closed his eyes and started thinking. He was shaking so hard he couldn't feel the strength to stand, and slid into a sitting position on the hard hospital floor. His heart was beating out of his chest. He wrapped his arms around his knees and put his head in between. He thought really hard about the whole situation and soon his mind drifted into a terrible place, imagining all of the terrible outcomes. "This is reality...", the teenager thought. He knew the rest of his life will be consumed by this. Of course he wished she wasn't sick, but now he would do anything for her. No, he always would do anything for her. A small smile appeared across his face. It was small, but effective. It was enough to keep him going. All he could do now is believe in her, and the power of her love.

Me: I SHIP IT SO HARD!

Kanda: Why was it so short...

Me: Hey no complaining! I have a life ya know! Oh wait.. Ryuuri is my life...

Ryuunosuke: (faints)

Misaki: Woah! Dragon fainted!

Jin: Do you think he was picturing something dirty with you, Rita? (laughs)

Rita: (blushes too much)

Aoyama: Wow, Rita! You like NEVER blush!

Rita: (blushing even more) (turns away) Don't look, it's embarassing...

Kanda: Woah, hey Ryuunosuke you better wake up for this. (kicks Ryuunosuke)

Ryuunosuke: Wha... (looks at Rita) (faints again)

Misaki: RYUURI POWER!


	4. Normal?

Me: Chapter 4! Let's go!

Aoyama: Please put us in it!

Me: Okie Dokie! But that means less Ryuuri... :(

Ryuunosuke: I could live with that.

Rita: Noooo my baby! (jumps on Ryuunosuke)

Kanda: Here we go again...

Rita : (kisses Ryuunosuke)

Ryuunosuke: (kisses back)

Everyone: OH MY GOD!

Ryuunosuke: Don't overreact. I only did it because the same thing happens in every chapter, she kisses me then I faint. We have to change it up some more OK?

Jin: Damn I thought we actually had some hope in him.

Ryuunosuke: (angrily stares at everybody)

Rita: It's okay, at least you didn't faint.

Shiina- Plan C?

Everybody: NOOOOOO!

Ryuunosuke sat against the hospital door for the next hour, thinking about everything that crossed his mind. Every once in a while, he could hear Rita have a coughing fit, and that made him feel so terrible. The others eventually walked down the hallway, saw him, and suffocated him with hugs. He immediately pulled away. They all noticed that he has been crying for a long time.

Misaki yelled, "DRAGON! It'll be okay!" , she jumped on him, forming another hug.

He drastically blushed, then pulled away. Shiina then interrupted the small talk and opened the door. They all ran inside. Ryuunosuke stood in the doorway, far behind everyone else , but enough to see Rita.

The British girl sat up, and made a cheerful expression. The girls all attacked her with hugs. Shiina was already balling her eyes out, while most of the girls were crying gently. Rita gladly accepted the hugs, and comforted the girls, while more tears escaped from her eyes. They all broke away from the hug, and Rita knew that they wanted answers.

She told them everything. When she was done, everyone was crying. She hated seeing people cry, especially when she caused it. Her heart was beyond broken.

She glanced back at Ryuunosuke who was casually leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed, and looking down. Rita lightly smiled at the boy who was trying so hard to be strong.

But she looked around at the rest of the room, and she knew that the cheerful expressions from this morning were gone, and now replaced with depressingly, deep, sorrow.

"Hey.. guys... I'll be dismissed from the hospital in a few days.. and I'll be in Japan for awhile because I can't go on planes right now..."

She saw lights smiles appear on some faces, but it quickly faded. She was trying everything she could to cheer then up.

"Once I'm back, I want everything to be normal again.. Okay?", she said desperately.

The others nodded and slowly, they were getting back to normal. Soon, Misaki shouted,

"Rittan!", she whipped around the room acting like a bird.

They all giggled. It was nothing much, but she was still happy. They all started making small talk, as if Rita wasn't in a hospital bed. She loved that, it's exactly what she wanted. The time flew by, and a doctor came in to tell them Rita had to get ready for bed. They all got there stuff together and began to leave.

Ryuunosuke didn't get any sleep that night, he was worrying about Rita. And he was worrying about himself too. He remembered how emotionally scarred he was when his mother passed. He can't go through that again.

Before he knew it, morning arrived. He tried getting some work done, it didn't go to well. His AI, Maid-chan was worried about him.

"It's nothing.. don't worry about me, Maid-chan. ", the programmer said.

"Tell me what's wrong!", she demanded.

"I.. I don't want to talk about it..", the teenager grabbed his bag and rushed out of the room.

He grabbed a tomato and hurried out of the house. He checked to make sure no one was following him. Right now he only wanted to see her alone. When he armed at the hospital, his gynophobia was screaming at him. He had to battle through it however, for Rita.

"Agh.. stupid freeloader..", he said aloud. He crossed his arms and stomped into the hospital. When he got to her door, he was second guessing himself.

"She's probably still sleeping.. She probably doesn't want to see me. " He was about to walk away, when something in his mind made him forcefully open the door and rush inside.

"Ryuunosuke!", she screamed cheerfully.

"Agh...", he mumbled under his breath.

He walked closer to her. His arms were still crossed and he had an awkward, annoyed expression on his face. She grabbed the bottom of his shirt and pulled him closer. He stumbled, and began to fall, but she held him and pulled him even closer and kissed him on the cheek, similar to the first one at the airport.

"F-F-F-FREELOADER!" He blushed profusely, and swayed back and forth as if he was going to faint.

She grabbed his wrist to keep his balance, she giggled at his reaction. He removed her hand and sat down in a chair.

"Hmph.", he said, still blushing and crossing his arms.

"Hey Ryuunosuke, let's go outside!"

The teenage boy lifted his eyebrow. Giggling, she grabbed a phone and called a nurse. Quickly, a nurse came in with a wheelchair. He looked away as she got into the chair. He remembered how his father would push his mother around. He quickly pushed that thought away, not wanting to get emotional today. He waited until Rita was situated.

"Okay Ryuunosuke, you can come here now."

He looked at her, and he swore his heart skipped a beat. She had a small blush on her face, with a huge smile. Her hands were in a cute position resting on her lap. Her legs were crossed, and she seemed lifted and just so happy. Beautiful, was the first thing that came to his mind. He blushed way too hard, while the nurse watched and laughed.

"You two have fun!", she said and walked away.

He grabbed the wheel chair and started pushing. "She's light", he thought to himself. He looked down at her hair. It had so much more color in it than yesterday. He pushed her outside and she gazed up at the beautiful of sky. He pushed her all around the hospital, and found a nice area with a garden. They were getting some stares, and he heard everyone talking about how "cute" they are. He started to blush more and more.

"Hey, Ryuunosuke , thank you so much.. This.. this is amazing!"

"Haven't you ever seen this before?"

"Well, yes, but it feels more special because I'm here with you."

She looked at him and smiled. She stood up, getting out of her wheelchair. Ryuunosuke perked his eyes, being cautious. She slowly and carefully walked over to him. She put her arms around his waist and buried her head in his chest.

"F-F-F-Freeloadeeerrrr!?"

The boy heard all of the "Aw's" around him. He tried to wiggle out of the hug before he fainted. It didn't work though, she was holding on tight. He felt her soft body being pressed against his. He felt her heart beating. And it was beating fast. The boy inside of him was yelling and screaming, but he knew he had to overcome his phobia. He had to do it for Rita.

Me: Aghh that was so long and it took forever to write...

Kanda: OMG you didn't make it that depressing!

Me: :)

Misaki - YAY POSTIVITY!

Rita: I reallllllyyyyy liked this chapter. Did you like it Ryuunosuke? (winks)

Ryuunosuke: Hmph,(rolls his eyes) I didn't hate it.

Shiina: Dragon.

Ryuunosuke: What?

Shiina: (pushes him into Rita)

Ryuunosuke: (lands on top of Rita, in an awkward position)

Rita: (Blushes like crazy)

Ryuunosuke: (Blushes like crazy)

Jin: Woah Woah Woah, guys calm down.

Ryuunosuke : AGGGH DAMN YOU (Springs back up like a rocket)

Rita: (Still on the ground, looks up at him cutely)

Ryuunosuke : Damn you Freeloader.. (turns and holds out a hand) (pulls her up)

Rita: Now I'm not letting go. (squeezes his hand)

Misaki: Hahaha! Good Job Shiina!

Ryuunosuke : Don't encourage her!

Everybody: HAHA! RYUURI POWER!

Me: oh yeah and if you enjoyed this story so far please review it really helps!


	5. The Battle

Me: YAY another chapter! What do you guys think of the story so far?!

Kanda: We should be in it more! But it is still good.

Aoyama: it's too emotional! (cries)

Jin- Well this is a Romance-Drama between Ryuunosuke and Rita.

Misaki: Yeah! It's so cuteeeeee!

Rita: I love it too!

Shiina: ... good...

Ryuunosuke : Good plot for a Romance Drama, but I just wish I wasn't one of the main characters.

Aoyama: (sniffling) This story reminds me of Your Lie in April...

Everybody: WHATT NOOOO (hugs Rita)

Me: Don't worry! There is a different ending!

Everybody: (sighs in relief)

Me: On with the story!

Ryuunosuke looked down at Rita, who was buried in his chest. He realized how much she was smiling and how much she was blushing. He gulped and tried to get his mind off this woman, to avoid fainting. She looked like she was enjoying it so much. But why? He wasn't anything special. Anyone could do this. Right? He looked around at all the people staring at them.

From a distance, the members of Sakurasao secretly watched, continously "awing". Ryuunosuke eventually saw them, but directed his attention back on Rita because he felt his shirt getting wet. He heard her softly sob. He could guess what she was thinking. Just seeing her cry made him want to cry. This is breaking his heart so he bit his lip while slowly and shakingly moving his hand. He placed it on her waist. He could feel her heart beating even faster. The teenage boy was sure his was beating twice as fast. Every part of his mind was against him. But no matter what, nothing could stop him from enjoying this moment. As for Rita, well it was as if she was in a dream. She was so comforted by his touch, as if it could cure anything. All of her worries disappeared when her body touched his. She did feel tears, but they were tears of love. Man, she loved this guy so much. Her legs began to feel weak, so she had to break the hug. When she moved away, she looked up at Ryuunosuke with the biggest grin on her face.

"Thank you", she said.

The gynophobic boy smiled right back at her. Ryuunosuke saw that she was shaking a little, so he grabbed her hand and helped her back into the wheelchair.

"The others were watching us."

He pointed to the direction they were in and sighed. She happily waved at them and the rest of Sakurasao rushed over to them.

"Aw, look at you love birds!", Kanda yelled.

"I-I-I-IT'S NOT LIKE THAT!"

Ryuunosuke crossed his arms and almost died of embarrassment. Jin and Kanda hit him on the shoulders, congratulating him, while laughing. Ryuunosuke looked away, trying to keep a straight face. For the rest of the day, they all hung out at the hospital and had a great time. Ryuunosuke couldn't even look at Rita without blushing.

"DRAGON! Stop blushing so much!", Misaki yelled.

The programmer turned around and tried calming down. They all watched as he failed to calm down. After a couple minutes of Ryuunosuke's attempt, they broke out in a long-lasting laugh. He gave them all a death stare.

"It's alright Ryuunosuke, I'll treat you good later!", Rita said seductively.

"STOP PLANNING MORE INDECENCIES!", the programmer yelled.

The others laughed at their gynophobic friend. The day quickly turned into night and soon it was time for them to go home.

On the way out, Rita said, "Hey, Ryuunosuke, make sure you get some sleep tonight".

It was like she could read his mind.

"I will, make sure you sleep too.", the programmer replied while she giggled.

When he got in bed that night, he laid I his bed with his eyes wide open, staring at the ceiling. All he could think about was that "moment" they shared outside the hospital. He felt something.. something strange. It was something that kept his gynophobia under control. "Is.. Is this love?", he thought. No.. he just feels sorry for her.. he just feels guilty. It felt wrong to think that, but throughout the night, he convinces himself. But what if he did love her? He realized if he did, it would hurt a lot more if something happens to her. He lays awake, while his mind wonders into places he didn't even know existed. "Sorry Freeloader, guess I'm not getting any sleep tonight", the teenage boy thought to himself.

Me: Aghhhh I'm having problems thinking of what to do next in this story... Option 1- Rita has a major attack at the hospital or.. Option 2- she gets dismissed and then a few cute filler chapters and then big attack...

Everyone : hmmmm you should let the viewers decide!

Me: heyyy that's a good idea! Ok everybody, comment if you want option 1 or 2 to happen!

Misaki: Aw.. this ending is so short Erica-chan!

Me: Sorry my mind is soo worn out...

Ryuunosuke : you better save your energy for the next chapter.

Rita: What was that Ryuunosuke? You're excited to make out with me?

Ryuunosuke : WHAAAATTTT!

Rita: you know you're not the only one who can hack! (winks)

Me: Ahh.. this was supposed to be short...

Misaki : Sorry Erica-chan! PARTYYYY! WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP...

Me: agh this needs to end!

Misaki: WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP...

(2hrs later)

... WOOP WOOP WOOP WO-

Jin- (covers her mouth)

Me: Finally! Bye everybody!

Everyone: Bye Erica-chan


	6. Little Things

"DRAGON! WAKE UP! YOUR LOVER IS BEING DISMISSED FROM THE HOSPITAL TODAY!"

Ryuunosuke rolled over to find Misaki-senpai screaming in his face.

"DRAGONNN GET UP WE HAVE TO GO GET YOUR LOVER FROM THE HOSPITAL!"

"S-S-SHE'S NOT MY LOVER!" he screamed while his cheeks turned pink.

He rolled back over to hide his blush. The hyperactive woman grabbed his leg and pulled him out of the bed, with a thump as he landed on the floor.

"Hey, that hurt!", he yelled.

"Oh well, now hurry up and get dressed! And clean your room, because we all know where Rita will be sleeping!", she giggled and quickly skipped out of the room.

"WHATT! I NEVER AGREED TO THAT!"

He tried to contain his blushes, while changed his clothes and picking up some things on his floor. He found that Rita's luggage has already been placed in his room. He sighed and continued cleaning, when he noticed the several bottles of pills in the pockets of her bags. He hit himself in the head. Why hasn't he ever saw them before? He remembered that a month ago he might have saw them, and just thought nothing of it. Why didn't he think anything of it? Did he not care? Why does he care so much now...

"DRAGONNN! HURRY UP! WE'RE LEAVING!" he heard Misaki yell from downstairs.

He pushed the questions aside, grabbed his bag, and met the others at the door.

"Ryuunosuke your lover's waiting..", Jin said teasingly.

Annoyed from the already crazy morning, Ryuunosuke angrily said, "Can you guys just shut up already! God, I'm just trying to be nice to her!"

With that, he crossed his arms and stormed out the door. The others silently followed the teenager as he stomped his way to the hospital. The programmer knew he had to calm himself down before they arrived.

"What about your gynophobia.. you didn't seem so gynophobic yesterday..", Kanda said quietly but enough for Ryuunosuke to hear.

This made him stop walking and slightly blush. He had to think for a second. He remembered that feeling that surpassed his gynophobia and allowed him to do the things that he did. He ignored answering the question and continued walking. Taking the hint, Kanda let it go. The black-haired boy was able to calm himself down before arriving at the hospital. When he entered, he saw the British woman leaning against a wall, waiting for them.

She screamed, "Ryuunosuke!", and once again, jumped in his arms. All of the members of Sakurasao noticed how much Ryuunosuke's expression changed when he saw Rita. It went from dark, slouchy, and frowning, to a slight smile, raised shoulders, and a welcoming aura. They all looked at each other, knowing what Ryuunosuke said before was false. They smiled at the sight of then hugging.

"F-Freeloader g-get off me!"

She hugged tighter as Ryuunosuke's face got even more red. Before he had a chance to faint, Rita let go. Ryuunosuke crossed his arms, and closed his eyes, trying to keep a straight face and tried remove the blush that seemed to be glued on. She laughed out loud at his burning face and his awkward standing position.

"I.. I don't see what's so funny..", the programmer said sternly.

"You are, silly!", and with that she tightly grabbed his arm, pulling him outside. He stumbled along, barely being able to walk because he was so overwhelmed. After they stepped out of the hospital, Rita stopped.

"Heyyyyy Ryuunosuke, I think I might of hurt my ankle, can you carry me?" , she giggled and pretended to limp around.

"That doesn't look that serious, but why do I have to carry you?"

"Umm.. all of the others sprained their ankles too!"

He looked around at the others, who were limping around. It was dreadfully obvious that everyone was faking it.

"And is anyone going to carry them?"

"No! Just shut up and carry me!", she said while laughing. Knowing no other way out, Ryuunosuke bent down in a position where Rita could get on.

"You're so demanding, Freeloader."

This made Rita laugh even more. Ryuunosuke instantly thought that laugh was like heaven. It made him lose his mind for a minute. He thought, "How can a girl laugh so easily after all she's been through?" His mind wandered off until he heard that familiar voice again.

"Ryuunosuke? Hey, Ryuunosuke?"

Drifting back into reality, Ryuunosuke shook his head, realizing he got side-tracked. Rita suddenly jumped on his back and hit his head, telling him to go.

"Damn you, Freeloader!", he said, beginning to walk.

The others stood back, laughing hysterically, and went back to walking normal, knowing that the little plan worked. As they walked, Rita pressed more and more onto Ryuunosuke's back, until he finally snapped,

"FREELOADER! If you want a ride, stop with such indecencies!"

Jokingly, Rita replied, "Oh what, Ryuunosuke, like this?"

She wrapped her legs completely around his lower body, and wrapped her arms completely around his chest, while placing her head on his shoulder.. She made sure every part of her torso was touching his back.

"F-F-FREELOADER! DO YOU WANT ME TO DROP YOU!?"

She laughed and leaned back a little, just enough to make Ryuunosuke somewhat comfortable. Ryuunosuke sighed in relief as they began to approach Sakurasou. She got off his back, and when he was about to go in, he felt her pulling on his shirt. Waiting until the rest went in, he turned around to see her slightly blushing with a huge smile on her face. He realized her expression changed drastically from just a couple of minutes ago.

"Hey, um.. thanks.. a lot.. just doing these little things makes me so happy, you wouldn't even believe it."

Ryuunsuke was lost in her smile, he thought it was priceless. He felt so much relief, seeing her smile like that. He thought about the other's smiles, and he knew her's was different. He didn't hear much of what she was saying, but her smile kept getting more and more perfect.

He gulped, "W-Why are you smiling like that?"

She giggled, "I just told you, silly, it's because of you. "

They shared an intimate stare for a while, both flustered and blushing. Ryuunosuke wondered if Rita's heart was beating as fast as his. Rita grabbed his shaking shoulder, and slowly got closer to him. He gulped again, knowing what was coming. She gently placed her lips on his. He wasn't as surprised this time, so he closed his eyes while his heart beated out of his chest. He noticed that particular feeling he felt the day before was battling with his gynophobia again, and it was winning. He found himself, almost enjoying the kiss. His mind was racing, with those same, stupid questions that he couldn't help but wonder. What is this feeling? Why hasn't he fainted yet? Why is he enjoying this? Is she enjoying it? She soon backed away. Reading his mind, she grabbed his hand and placed it over the area of her heart. Ryuunosuke shivered at what he felt. Rita then placed her hand on his chest. She looked up at him, with the same, perfect smile and hugged him.

"I love you" she quietly said.

Ryuunosuke felt some tears run down his face. Why was he crying? He thought to himself, even though he already knew the answer. Rita soon noticed and held him closer. One hand was placed on the back of his head, scrunching up his long black hair, and her other hand was on his back, wrinkling his shirt.

"Hey.. stop crying okay? It makes me want to cry..."

He broke away from her hug, and wiped his eyes. He looked away from her out of embarrassment. It killed him to cry in front of her and it killed her to see him cry because of her.

After a long silence, Ryuunosuke said, "I'm- I'm really scared, Rita.. " "It's... It's alright, Ryuunosuke, I'm back now. It'll be okay... I promise."

She understood how terrible Ryuunosuke must be feeling, going through all of this again. All she could do now was comfort him. But she hated telling him everything was going to be okay, because she really didn't know if that was the truth.


	7. Lost

Me: Hehe.. I'm excited for this chapter!

Ryuunosuke : Ugh..

Rita: Yes! Can't wait! Hehehe (pounces on Ryuunosuke)

Misaki: Hey, Erica-chan, I need some music!

Me: Oooh! I know music! What kind of music do you want?

Misaki: (points to the awkward, one-sided hug being shared between Ryuunosuke and Rita)

Me: Hah! Well in real life, "Clarity" by Zedd is a good song to describe them, and in this story, I think "I need your love" by Calvin Harris and "arms" and "A thousand years" by Christina Perri.

Aoyama: OMG! I've heard all of those! I think it's perfect for Ryuunosuke and Rita!

Ryuunosuke: (gives a death stare to every living thing around him)

Rita: Oooh sounds good... right Ryuunosuke? (leans against him)

Ryuunosuke: hmm... No. (pushs her off of him)

Me: Haha, Rita, you're going to love this chapter!

Rita: YAY! (sexually eyeing Ryuunosuke)

Jin: Wowwww...

Me: Yeah, I'll let you guys be, ON WITH THE STORY!

The other members of Sakurasao were secretly watching Ryuunosuke and Rita through a window from inside. When Kanda turned around, he noticed that Shiina had tears running down her face.

"Shiina..."

The others looked back at her. Misaki and Aoyama gave her a comforting hug.

"I.. I've never seen Rita this is happy...Never... that look on her face... I've never seen it before.. for as long as I have known her"

Shiina wiped the tears from her eyes. Kanda looked back at the pair. He never saw Ryuunosuke like that either.

Shiina tugged on Kanda's shirt, she looked up at him with her watery amber eyes, "Dragon loves Rita, right?"

He took one last look at the shaking boy through the window, "Yeah, but I just think he won't admit it."

He smiled, looked back at the others, and spread the smile.

Outside, Ryuunosuke noticed the others watching through a window. He stood up, and realized Rita wasn't changing her point of view, as if she was daydreaming and staring at nothing. He wondered what she was thinking about. Actually he didn't want to know, because her expression was getting grimmer and grimmer. That perfect smile was slowly disappearing.

"Hey. Freeloader."

He broke her trance. He looked away, and slouched back, holding out a hand to help her up. She elegantly grasped his hand and hoisted herself up. When she was up, she tightened her grip on his hand, not wanting to let go. Ryuunosuke looked at their hands, and embarrassed, he tried to pull away, but her grasp was too tight. Giggling, she pulled him inside.

"F-Freeloader! Hey! Aggh!"

He stumbled along, with his face being solid red. The others were waiting on the other side of the door. Rita, not even looking at them, rushed to the stairway, and practically dragged the programmer up the stairs. She pulled him all the way to inside of his bedroom, and slammed the door behind them.

"Wha-What are you doing..."

She took of her shirt.

"F-F-FREELOADER! AGHH YOUUUUU!"

Ryuunosuke then saw only black, and went unconscious. Rita then quickly searched his closet, finding an old shirt. She put it on, because she forgot to bring sleepwear. She couldn't wait to see Ryuunosuke reaction. She giggled to herself, just by picturing it. She began cleaning his room, and preparing a bed. She looked back at the unconscious boy, knowing that she still had time before he regained consciousness. Without realizing what she was wearing, she made her way downstairs to get some tea for them.

"Oh, Rita, there you are, we were wondering what you and Ryuunosuke were...", Kanda stopped talking when he noticed what she was wearing.

The others had their jaw dropped, while Rita immediately realized why.

She blushed and laughed, "Don't worry, I just wanted to mess with him with this shirt, we didn't do anything.. yet..", she winked.

She giggled and continued in preparing tea. When she finished, she grabbed a tomato, and began to go back. She noticed that all of the others were staring at her, with small smiles across their faces. This made her smile as well.

Shiina stood up, and approached her. "Rita, are you in love?"

The others shifted uncomfortably and Rita froze in surprise at the unusual question that her best friend just asked. She giggled and nodded happily. Shiina smiled and asked another strange question.

"Is he in love?" They all stared and waited for a response.

She gave a fake laugh, patted Shiina's head, and said, "We'll see"

With that, she gave her a small friendly kiss on the cheek, and hurried back up to his room. She stopped in front of his door, and looked at the ground. She thought about the question some more. No, she didn't want to think about, she didn't want to get sad today. But she knew sadness has already taken over. She gulped to try and stop the tears. Those depressing questions ran through her mind again. What if he never falls in love with her? Is she is just being a nuisance? She thought about all the emotional pain she has already put him through. She kept telling herself no, but the thought kept coming back. She placed her head against the door, and some tears began to escape. Then, suddenly, Ryuunosuke opened the door, to find Rita on the other side.

"Freeloader?"

She quickly went inside and attempted to immediately get rid of the tears. She put down the tea and tossed him the tomato.

"Should I be more concerned that you were crying, or the fact that you're wearing that shirt.." Rita then looked down remembered the shirt. She tumbled over laughing.

"Oh.. yeah. I forgot clothing to sleep in! Can I wear this?"

He had a small blush on his face, but a somewhat annoyed and somewhat concerned expression on his face. He raised an eyebrow.

"Well, my answer wouldn't change anything, so just don't let the others see you in that."

"Oh, it's too late to say that..."

"Freeloader!"

He blushed even more, slouched back, and crossed his arms.

"After running inside, dragging me up the stairs, and slamming the door, they'll think.."

He stopped his sentence, and gulped, with his eyes widening. Rita stared at him, then realized what he meant. Her face instantly went red. She burst out in laughter. Ryuunosuke, with his face as red as the tomato he was holding, looked away and rolled his eyes. His heart beated fast, and beated even faster every time he looked at her. It didn't exactly help to see her in his shirt. Or that the others saw her like this... but she did look quite cute in it though. Shortly after he thought that, he yelled at himself. He looked at her again, wearing his baggy shirt, with her hair loose and frizzy, with that perfect smile again... He was lost in her beauty, once again. Even though his face didn't show it, he was enjoying every minute of it.

"Ryuunosuke.. what are you looking at?"

He quickly diverted his attention back to reality. He scratched the back of his head.

"Um.. Nothing.."

He sat down, across from her, and sipped his tea. He had to stop looking at her, or she will start to suspect something. But is that really a bad thing?

Me: OK, this is the last "cute" and "irrelevant" chapter, next time, it's gonna get depressing.

Rita: Aw, that sucks.. I loveeeeddd this chapter!

Aoyama: Yeah, why do you have to go back to sad?

Me: This chapter had like nothing to do with the plot. The plot itself is sad, therefore the more I focus on the plot, the sadder it gets.

Ryuunosuke: So this was basically just a filler?

Me: Yes, but I still had a lot of fun writing this!

Kanda: These are starting to be really long chapters.

Me: Yeah, I know, I don't know if I should stick to long ones, or do more little ones.. but whatever I'm tired.. so goodbye everyone! see ya next time!

Everyone: Bye Erica-chan!


	8. Tears

Me: Aghhhh these next few chapters are going to be reaallly sad.

Aoyama, Rita, Misaki: No!

Me: Don't worry, I've decided that Rita won't die.

Everyone: (sighs in relief)

Shiina: Plan C... (holds up machete)

Everyone: (hides behind Kanda) NOOOO

Kanda: Where did you even get that?

Shiina: Get what?

Kanda: The machete?

Shiina: Someone gave it to me.

Everyone: ...

Me: ON WITH THE STORY!

It was the middle of the night when Ryuunosuke woke up to the soft cries of the British girl who was sleeping on the floor. His eyes opened wide and he stared at the ceiling. His heart was breaking little by little as the minutes passed by. She wasn't aware that he was awake. Ryuunosuke didn't know if he should talk to her not. He rolled so his back was to her, and tried to go back to sleep. It was impossible. He couldn't sleep knowing that she was hurting. He sat up, and looked at her. She was curled up in a little ball with the bankets scrunched up around her.

"Uh.. Hey, Freeloader?"

She quickly stopped crying and pulled the covers over her head. He grabbed the covers and pulled them off of her. She sat up, knowing there was no other choice. The programmer got up to give her a tissue. He sat down next to her. Her hair fell forward as she looked at the ground. "R-Ryuunosuke.. do you hate me?" He looked up at her, and saw some tears fall from her face. He was surprised she was so serious about this.

"Of course I don't hate you, I let you wear my shirt and sleep in my room, I don't let people I hate do that."

"But, I put you through so much...I feel as if I'm constantly causing you so much emotional pain.. I can't help but feel guilty."

"Hey.. I mean, yeah, these couple days have been terrible, but um.. when you're here...I.. uh.. I kinda just forget about everything and I feel a whole lot better..."

Rita immediately grabbed him and hugged him, causing a few tears to fall from him as well. In a complete sob now, Rita held him tightly.

"I-I'm so sorry Ryuunosuke.."

He placed an arm around her, "I'll be okay, as long as I'm with you."

Rita's heart jumped at those words. She never thought he would say that. But he instantly regretted saying it, though, because it was if something had made him say that. He knew it was true, but even he couldn't believe he said it aloud. Rita hugged him tighter and tighter, every time she replayed the words in her head. Ryuunosuke could feel the fast beating of Rita's heart. Or maybe that was his own, he couldn't tell. They cried in each others arms for what felt like eternity.

"Freeloader, can I ask you more about your illness?"

She gulped and broke the hug, she had her head down at first, as if she really didn't want to, but she then raised her head to meet Ryuunosukes eyes.

"If you want to."

"Uh. how long has it been going on?"

"Since I was born."

"How come Shiina never knew?"

"I never told anybody about it, I didn't want their pity, or to make them feel sad if something ever happened to me."

"How usual are your attacks?"

"I usually get them once a month, but it's really unpredictable. I rarely ever go to the hospital though, the last one that happened was a lot worse then my normal ones..."

She gulped and looked away, she felt embarrassed, she never talked about this to anyone else before.

"Um, so how long can't you go on planes?

"Two weeks"

"You seem to have everything under control, but, Freeloader.. why... why am I worrying so much?"

He suddenly put his face in his hands, and bent over so he was resting on his knees. He didn't know what was happening to him. Even if he wanted to stop crying, he wouldn't be able to. He felt as if something was taking over him and releasing all of the emotions that he prefers to hide. Rita placed a hand on his back.

"Um..E-Everything.. Everything will be okay... "

"You said that strange, Rita, are you lying?"

She couldn't reply, she didn't know what to say.

"Rita!"

He grabbed her shoulders and shook her.

"I.. I don't know!"

She turned away forcefully, escaping his grasp. She looked down, clenched her fists, and said,

"Ryuunosuke, I want to say everything will be okay, I want to believe that...but.. but you know how wrong I could be."

She gulped, not ever wanting to tell him that, but it was necessary now. There was a long silence.

"I'm glad you said that.. the worst feeling in the world is when someone says it'll be okay when it won't be, but they convince you. So it hurts more when they leave, because they lied to you, and I.. I believed it.."

He could barely finish his sentence, he was crying so hard. He turned away from her in embarrassment. Rita watched him slowly breakdown. Her heart was already shattered, but now it feels like it's breaking even more. She patted his back and pulled him so he was crying on his shoulder.

"It's alright to cry, I'll be here for you. And I still love you way to much to ever leave, just remember that."

She pushed him down on the bed, and got herself comfortable beside him. She wrapped an arm around him and laid her head on his beating chest. He subconsciously placed an arm around her waist and buried his face in her hair. Rita felt the tears from his face drip on her head. She quietly said, "Hey.. no more tears..." He gulped, "...Hypocrite." With his free hand, he wiped her tears that she was trying to hide. After a while, she fell asleep with a smile on her face and with the sight of that, Ryuunosuke did the same.


	9. His mother

Me: OMG SuperMikoFromTheFuture has been talking to me! I feel so honored! She's like the queen of RyuuRi fanfic :)

Aoyama: Haven't you read like every one of her stories?

Me: YES! And I loved every one of them!

Ryuunosuke: Calm down.

Me: How can I!? THE SuperMikoFromTheFuture is reading THIS story! Ahhhh!

Everyone: We love you Mikon!

Me: YESSS! Everyone, go read her stories! RyuuRi POWER! (over-exaggerated fist bump) NOW ON WITH THE STORYYYY!

"Rita, are you in...", Shiina opened the door.

She found Rita sprawled out, peacefully sleeping on Ryuunosuke. They were both sound asleep. Shiina eyes widened, but the rest of her face stayed emotionless. She quietly hid behind the door, but peeked in, interested in the sleeping pair. Kanda eventually saw Shiina, and concerned, he went to see what she was doing. When he approached her, Shiina put her finger to her lips and said, "Shh..." He wasn't picking up, so she looked back into the room. Following, Kanda looked in the room, to see their friends sleeping together. "They look so comfortable.." , Kanda thought to himself. Shiina then pulled out her phone and took a picture. The brown haired boy raised an eyebrow at her action. With no change in tone, she quietly said "For the wedding.", and calmly walked away.

Ryuunosuke woke up and felt something heavy on him. He looked down to see a bunch of blonde hair all over him. He also noticed his right arm was touching something warm. Panicking he quickly slid out from underneath her. He trembled, and held his arm as if it had been diseased. The programmer then began to remember the events of the night. His face was completely red, and his mind was racing. After all that happened, he still couldn't believe he allowed her to sleep with him. Who knows what she could have done to him while he was asleep? What if somebody saw them like this? He looked down at Rita, who was still fast asleep. Her hair was all messed up, she was wearing his baggy t-shirt, and.. oh no. The black-haired boy had a direct view of her panties. He almost fainted, but quickly slapped himself, which returned his sanity. He quickly threw the covers over her. He was so flustered, he forced a frown and walked away from the bed, to his computers to get some work done. Maid-chan quickly appeared on the screen. Ryuunosuke immediately turned down the volume of the computer, knowing what was coming.

"WHY IS THAT WOMAN SLEEPING ON YOUR BED AGAIN! AHH! "

"Calm down, or I'll shut you off, " Ryuunosuke said quietly, not wanting to wake Rita.

Maid-chan, still angry, frowned and put her hand over her mouth. Ryuunosuke continued working, and had a lot to do, because he hasn't been on his computer in almost two days.

"Damn", he said to himself, realizing he had a meeting in an hour.

He directed his attention back on his other work. He worked for about a half hour, until he heard noises behind him. He looked back at Rita, who was beginning to wake up.

"Ryu.. Ryuunosukeee...?"

With her eyes still closed, she moved her hand around his bed, searching for his body. "Former Freeloader, I'm already up" She opened her eyes and lookes into his.

There was an intimate stare being shared, until Maid-chan yelled, "AGGG EW GUYS J-J-JUST STOP!"

The programmer, blushing, turned back around and looked at his computer screen. Rita giggled and got up. She made the bed and then went downstairs to get breakfast. When she entered the kitchen, everyone looked at her, smiling again.

Kanda, with the biggest grin on his face, said, "Ohayo! Did you sleep well? "

He giggled and some others did as well. She was confused at first, but then realizing what they meant.

Her face turned completely red, "Y-Yeah.."

They laughed at their embarrassed friend. She giggled along with them, and quickly made some tea and grabbed another tomato. She carried the things to his room, and when she opened the door, she saw Ryuunosuke in a suit, brushing his long, black hair. Their faces both went red, and Rita laughed out loud.

"I have an important meeting soon.. and there was a dress code."

Highly attracted, Rita blushed even more and said, "You look so handsome!"

She smiled as her heart felt like it would break through her chest. She put the tray down, and grabbed the brush from his hand.

"Hey!"

She did something she has always wanted to do, which was to brush his hair. It was so smooth and beautiful. She brushed all of the tough parts that he couldn't reach. Ryuunosuke, who was highly embarrassed, squinted his eyes shut. He clenched his body, causing him to shake. He grabbed the tomato that she supplied for him.

"I didn't even know you owned fancy clothing", she giggled.

"Well, I do."

She spun him around and pinned him against the wall. She stared at him with her big, blue eyes. Her eyes must have been seductive, because Ryuunosuke didn't move, or even try to. He was frozen, and his eyes were locked on hers. Once she shifted her eyes, Ryuunosuke flinched. She checked out his entire body, head to toe, then grabbed his hand, and placed it on the area over her heart. Once again, he felt it racing. He gulped. Why was it beating so fast? Why was his own heart beating even faster? "RYUUNOSUKE! YOU'RE GONNA BE LATE FOR THE MEETING IF YOU KEEP FOOLING AROUND WITH THE STUPID FREELOADER!" Maid-chan screamed so loud, Ryuunosuke thought all of Sakura Hall heard. His face quickly went red, and Rita released him. "Oops!" she cutely said while giggling. Ryuunosuke gave both Rita and Maid-chan a death stare. He got up, brushed himself off and headed out. He was halfway out the door, when Rita grabbed his arm. She quickly pulled him and kissed his cheek. "Ah, F-FREEL-LOADER!" , he looked back at her, who had "that" smile back on her face. He blushed and ran out the door. How was he supposed to focus on work after that?

"YOU STUPID F-FREELOADER! LAY OFF! ", Maid-chan yelled at Rita.

" But Maid-chan, he liked it!"

"NOOOO WHAT'S EVEN HAPPENING, Ryuunosuke's acting a lot less gynophobic.. Did something actually happen?"

Rita looked at floor when she heard the question she, unfortunately, knew the answer to.

"Um yeah, Maid-chan, something... something did happen."

There was a dreadful silence.

"Um.. Maid-chan.. what do you know about Ryuunosuke's mother?"

" Uh...Rita.. Do you know what happened to h-"

"Yes."

Rita cut her off. Maid-chan slouched, looking depressed. A picture showed up on the screen. It was a picture of Ryuunosuke and his mother. The young boy was probably 3 or 4, and his mother looked perfectly fine. Rita's heart pounded at the sight of the picture. Her eyes widened, as she started shaking. She held her arms as she intently stared at it. His mother looked so much like him. They seemed to have a really close relationship.

Maid-chan began talking, "After Ryuunosuke's mother passed, Ryuunosuke was forced into therapy, because he was so young and couldn't handle a loss. The therapist was able to destroy all of the memories of his mother. Since Ryuunosuke grew up without a woman role in his life, he developed gynophobia. I don't know what you are doing to him, Rita, but um.. help him, ok?"

Rita was balling her eyes out by the end of the story.

"Um, I don't know if I'm helping him or not, Maid-chan.."

She told the AI about her illness and what happened at the hospital.

"When Ryuunosuke saw me... he fell to his knees and held his head.. and he told me that his mother passed away because of anemia...He looked like he was in the middle of 50 battles going on inside his head... It was terrible.. " Another dreadful silence occurred, this time all you could hear was the depressing small sobs of Rita.

"So when Ryuunosuke saw you in the bed he must've remembered a similar situation with his mother."

Rita's heart was breaking little by little, just by talking about the subject. Everytime things start to get a little better, something depressing comes up, but she needs to be strong.. for him. She couldn't even picture what Ryuunosuke must be going through. For so many years, he had no idea who his mother was or where she was, and it just hit him all at once. Why was he hiding it? He should have just talked to her. Maybe she was being to selfish. She just doesn't know anymore. All she knows is that he needs to talk to someome, and that she will be there for him. Suddenly the two heard someone open the door. Rita whipped her head around to see Ryuunosuke's big eyes glued to the picture that was on the computer screen. He started tearing up.

"R-Ryuunosuke..."

Rita got up and approached him. But he ignored her, and went over to the wires of his computer and pulled the plug, causing the bright screen to go black. He then walked out of the room. Rita watched him, walk away from her, not even a word. It killed her to see him like this. She can't just let him run away.

"Ryuunosuke, wait!"

She was about to take off, when she looked back at the black computer screen. She put her hand on the cold screen.

"Don't worry, Maid-chan, I'll save him."


	10. Thank You

Me: Chapter 10! I'm so excited! We're getting so close to the BIG chapter.

Kanda: Uh Oh, what's the BIG chapter?

Me: You'll have to just wait and see...

Ryuunosuke: Oh boy...

Rita: Ryuunosuke! I missed you!

Ryuunosuke: ... Freeloader, we were never apart...

Rita: I don't care, I still missed you! (grabs Ryuunosuke's arm)

Ryuunosuke : Damn you Freeloader... (blushes)

Me: Aghhhh you guys are wayyyy to KAWAIIIIII. It's consuming my life. I love it.

Misaki: CAAAAAAAANNOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNNNNN (runs around the room)

(bumps into Ryuunosuke)

(Ryuunosuke falls, carrying Rita to the floor with him)

(Rita snuggles against Ryuunosuke's body.)

(Ryuunosuke faints.)

Jin: Hey, Rita, now you can do whatever you want to him (winks)

Rita: (blushes) (kisses his forehead)

Me: AHHH WAY TOO MANY FEEELLLLLSSSS I'M DYING FROM CUTENESS

Aoyama : Wait, Erica- chan, you got to close this!

Me: Oh yeah, ON WITH THE STORY!

She ran down the stairs as her mind raced, her heart shriveled, and her tears grew stronger. She hurried out the door. It wasn't long before she found Ryuunosuke, who was sitting on the curb, right outside of the building. She was out of breath by the time she got there.

"Ryuunosuke..I.."

He cut her off, "That was my mom in that picture, wasn't it?"

She sat down next to him.

"Yeah"

He put his face in his hands and cried. Rita immediately hugged him, and allowed him to cry on her shoulder.

"Ryuunosuke.. I just realized how much you were suffering... why didn't you tell me? We could've talked about..it kills me to see you in so much pain, please, let's talk."

There was no response, because he couldn't manage to get any words out. He was releasing all of the emotions he has pushed aside for the past 2 days. He cried on Rita's shoulders for what seemed like forever.

"Ryuunosuke, Maid-chan and I love you very much, and please promise that you'll never hide again, okay? "

He slowly nodded his head in agreement.

"As soon as I saw you, in the hospital bed, my mind went back to a terrible time... It was with my mother, she was sitting up, exactly how you were, and she told me how much she loved me, and the only other thing I remember.. was the heart monitor making a death-defying noise and that terrible straight line... I also remember the random trips to the hospital she made.. always so unexpected. Oh, Rita... they scared me so much."

At those words, Rita hugged him even tighter. Ryuunosuke grasped onto Rita's back as he continued. "I remember going to therapy and forgetting it all.. and after that I felt as if something was missing in my life and now that I know what it is... I..I.."

Unable to continue, Ryuunosuke dug his eyes into her shirt, leaving a wet spot.

"Ryuunosuke..."

"Sh... don't say anything, this is enough."

Ryuunosuke hugged her even tighter and gripped the back of her shirt even harder.

"Thank you so much, Rita, if it wasn't for you, this would still be consuming me. I was dying on the inside this whole time, I didn't know how to confront my problems. Just being there for me at a time like this is priceless. Thanks for... caring so much."

He cried a bit more, until Rita grabbed the sides of his face and kissed him. Rita's heart skipped a beat as she felt him kiss back, but she broke the kiss quickly, because she still has a lingering question running through her mind, that stops her from going to far. She knew it wasn't the right time to ask. They sat in silence for a while. Then, she stood up and held at a hand. He grabbed it and she forcefully pulled him up. He realized he fell for the same trick again when he couldn't escape from her grasp. She swung their arms back and forth cheerfully.

"We should go tell Maid-chan."

"Alright, can I have my hand back?"

"No! " She said, smiling from ear to ear.

Then, however, Kanda noticed them walking through the hallway.

"Oh hey, Rita, Shiina wants to hang out with you, apparently she's jealous of Ryuunosuke because he gets to spend more time with you."

Rita blushed, and let go of his hand, "Ok, be back in a bit, Ryuunosuke!" She quickly sneaked a kiss on the cheek before she left. This time, Ryuunosuke fainted because Kanda was watching and he was so surprised.

He woke up on his bed and checked the time, and realized he must've been passed out for over an hour. He searched the room for the former freeloader but she was nowhere to be found. He then remembered the kiss she snuck and that she was going to be out with Shiina. He also remembered that they wanted to talk to Maid-chan. The programmer questioned himself if he should wait until Rita gets back, but decided just to do it himself. He went to plug the computers back in, and in an instant, Maid-chan appeared on the screen. She wasn't screaming this time, she was actually dead silent, waiting to hear what the teenage boy has to say.

"The former freeloader really helped me, I'm better now. "

Maid-chan shook her head in agreement and in relief.

"Where is she?"

"Hanging out with Shiina, apparently Shiina got jealous of me..", he said while blushing and laughing.

Angry, Maid-chan raised an eyebrow.

"Ryuunosuke, be honest,

do you love her?"

His heart jumped at the AI's words.

"I-I don't know.", he lied.

"It's just that, I know the more I care for her, the more it'll hurt if something ever.."

He had to stop speaking to wipe his eyes, he really didn't want to start crying again.

Changing the subject, Ryuunosuke asked, "Um, Maid-chan, can I see that picture of my mom?"

Without a word, she brought it up on the screen. Ryuunosuke's heart thumped and he intently stared at the picture. Little by little he started remembering all of the good times he spent with his mother.

Behind the door, Rita stood with her ear against the wood. She has come home early, and was about to wall into the room, when she heard Maid-chan ask Ryuunosuke if he loved her. She was somewhat happy with the answer, that was all she needed for now. At the moment, Ryuunosuke was probably looking at that photo. She decided now would be a good time to enter. She opened the door, and immediately Ryuunosuke's eyes whipped around. He blinked at her, then turned back around and continued studying the picture. The British teenager went up to him, and put a hand on his shoulder. She felt him flinch, but then he begin to relax a little. She looked at the picture with him. She noticed, somehow, that Ryuunosuke was smiling. Then she looked at Maid-chan, who also had a big grin on

her face. Maid-chan met Rita's stare, and silently mouthed, "Thank you".

Me: Hmm I have no idea if I'm writing this correctly, I always feel as if I'm using to much detail, which makes the story really long, then the readers might get bored...

Aoyama: Hmm.. isn't more detail better?

Kanda: Ask the readers..

Me: Oh yeah, everybody, if you want can you please review this and give me your opinion on details, and I could also use your opinion on the overall story and plot, for other future stories.

Rita: Do people review this story often?

Me: Yes! I absolutely love all of the people that review this, they are so positive and amazing, my heart gets all funny when they say stuff! Hehehe

Rita: YAY, that's good :)

Me: Yeah! Ok bye guys, I have to eat lunch, BYEEEE see you guys soon!

Everyone : Bye Erica-chan!


	11. An Ending and A Beginning

g Rita stood behing Ryuunosuke and hugged him from behind.

"Freeloader, get off me."

"Nope!" She said, and hugged the boy even tighter. He shot her a fake annoyed face, and sighed. He focused his attention back on the screen, which was now covered in old pictures of his mother. He studied everyone closely, while Rita was watching closely as well. His mother had long black hair, similar to his, and bright blue eyes. She seemed to have a weak body, it looked frail and thin. The two noticed in some pictures, she had an oxygen tank attached at her nose.

"Hey, Ryuunosuke.. let's go visit her grave, as a proper closing, you know?"

Rita could tell he was unsure about the idea, but after thinking about it for a while, he gave in.

"Fine, tomorrow morning."

He clicked off his computer screen, got up and headed for his bed. He stopped half way though, realizing he head nothing to do. He sighed, and immediately Rita realized that he was bored.

She began to speak, "Hey... if you're bored, I know something we can do!"

As fast as lighting, she jumped on his back, making Ryuunosuke fall face first on the bed.

"Ow.. what was that for?"

With no response, she pushed the hair away from his neck.

"F-F-Freeloader! What do you think your doing!"

"Giving you a hickey, what else?"

She laughed and bit the side of his neck hard.

"No! What! OW!", Ryuunosuke screamed.

She released him, and giggled, looking at the bruise left on his skin.

"Freeloader! That hurt like hell! What did you do?

She pulled out a small mirror, and showed him the small black and blue mark.

"RITA! WHAT THE F.. "

He was interrupted by the opening of the door. He looked and saw Misaki-senpai with her jaw open, staring at the two on the bed.

"Should I have knocked?"

She giggled, and walked in. Ryuunosuke faked a faint, to embarrassed to be conscious.

Rita blushed and said, "No, it's fine, we weren't doing anything."

She got off of Ryuunosuke and brushed herself off.

"Okkkk... whatever you say Rittan.. Well we're having a hotpot!"

"Yay, we'll be down in a second."

"Haha! Okie Dokie!"

Misaki skipped away laughing to herself. Rita blushed even more, then looked back at Ryuunosuke who was blushing ten times worse then she was.

She smiled, "Ryuunosuke, she's gone."

She grabbed his arm and pulled him up. When he was on his feet, he immediately went to his mirror, and stared at the mark again. He positioned his hair so it would cover it. He shot Rita an annoyed look, then stepped out of the door. She ran up to him and walked beside him. They entered the room, and immediately got wrapped up in the chaos.

"DRAGON AND RITTAN!", Misaki screamed, "WHAT WERE YOU GUYS DOING!"

Ryuunosuke and Rita blushed, and then all of a sudden Ryuunosuke felt the cold air of the fan hit him, and felt some hair fly back. He gulped, knowing what was now visible. Rita quickly read the situation, and nonchalantly stepped in front of him.

"We weren't doing anything of that sort, I just messing around with him."

She gave a believeable smile with a small blush. She nudged the boy behind her with her elbow. Ryuunosuke immediately understood and turned around, fixing his hair.

"Ok, Rittan, we'll believe that!"

She winked and went back to eating her food. Rita turned around, looking at Ryuunosuke, as he muttered a thank you. He then walked over to the fan, holding his hair, and turned it off.

The rest of the evening turned to casual talking, until a question arose at the dinner table. Ryuunosuke looked up, and noticed that every pair of eyes were staring at him.

Jin asked, "Hey Ryuunosuke, what would you do if Rita went back to England and got a boyfriend?"

He looked at their curious eyes, when he spotted Rita's, which were also filled with nervousness and curiosity.

"Um.. I don't ever think the former freeloader would do anything of that sort, so.."

"Well what if I did?"

Ryuunosuke jumped at her voice. Even hypothetically, it never crossed his mind. He thought about the situation. Just by picturing it, a wave of anger hit him.

Without thinking he said, "Well, hypothetically speaking, I guess I would go to England and kick them to hell."

The entire room was stunned by his answer. Ryuunosuke just crossed his arms and shut his eyes, regretting answering that question truthfully. He heard the small laughs and "Aw's" take over the area. He glanced over at Rita, who was staring right back at him, with the happiest smile he has ever seen. She had soft blushes form on her cheeks. Her heart was racing. But not as fast as Ryuunosuke's. He broke the stare, and looked at the ground. "Why does she have to be so goddamn attractive..", the programmer thought to himself. A small smile appeared on his face. He forced it away, and went back to a straight face as he got up to put his dishes in the sink. He headed up to his room, with Rita following him. She stopped in the middle of the hallway and began to spoke.

"So.. can I have some type of reward for helping you hide your hickey?"

"Depends what type of "reward" we're talking about... "

"How about a compliment?"

"... Wasn't what I said before enough?

"It was okay, but I would like something more... "

Ryuunosuke stepped into his room, as she curiously followed. A blush started to appear on his face. he crossed his arms and closed his eyes.

"Fine.. you're.. um.. you're pretty.."

Rita laughed at Ryuunosuke, she then went up very close to him, and said, "You're handsome too."

He titled his head back and gently pushed her away.

"Is this over now.."

"Nope! How about 5 minutes with your body... with no limits.."

"F-Freeloader! No!"

"How about 30 seconds?"

He thought about all the things she could do in 30 seconds. It really wasn't that much. He looked at the smiling girl in his room. This was like every normal guy's dream, to have a beautiful girl in their bedroom, willing to do anything for them. He gulped.

"Nothing to crazy, ok?"

She giggled. He sat down on the floor, propped up against the wall. The black haired boy pulled out his phone and set a timer for 30 seconds. Ryuunosuke was second guessing himself, and was struggling to hit go. Rita, not being able to wait any longer, quickly hit the button. She immediately grabbed his head and brought it to hers. She looked deep into his eyes, and pressed their lips together. She broke the kiss to reposition herself. The blonde kneeled on top of him, and pressed her body against his chest. She grabbed his face again and kissed him, harder and longer this time. She pressed her lips against his forcefully, so hard that they were both out of breath when they broke. She immediately went into a cuddling position, and before she knew it, his phone went off. He separated himself from her and shut off the phone.

"I hope you know that I didn't need a reward, I just was dying to make out with you. So, thank you.. that was probably the best 30 seconds of my life."

Suprised, he looked into her deep blue eyes.

"R-Really?"

She bit her lip and nodded.

He was shocked, but something about making her happy made him happy too. The same question that he has been trying to avoid popped up in his head again. Does he love her? He secretly already knows the answer, but keeps pushing it away. He doesn't want to get hurt anymore. In the end, that's all love is, right? But what is he supposed to tell her?

Out of nowhere, he randomly says, "Hey um.. wait for me, okay?"

There was a long silence after his words.

"Of course I will."

He stared at the ground, overthinking everything. Rita lifted his chin to meet her eyes.

"Ryuunosuke, I love you, even if I have to wait for 20 years, if it means true love, I'll wait forever."

He smiled at her comforting words. She always knows what to say to him, no matter what the situation. He figured it was about time he repay her.

"Thanks, um.. let's go to sleep..."

She giggled at his awkward way of saying things. She got up and searched his closet again. He rolled his eyes, but smiled. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't attracted to her wearing his shirt. He watched her, as she pulled out one of his old, faded shirts. She held it up to him, looking for approval.

"Whatever, just let me get out of the room before you change."

He blushed and hurried out the door. He leaned against the outside wall. Misaki instantly noticed him, and rushed to chat.

"DRAGGGGOOONN! Watcha doin? "

"Waiting for the former freeloader to get changed."

"Hmm... and what is it that she is changing into? ", Misaki giggled at her own words.

His face instantly went red, and Misaki got more and more persistent.

" More importantly, what do you want to her see in? "

"M-Misaki-senpai! Stop asking such indecent questions!"

"What indecent questions? "

Rita popped her head out of the door. Ryuunosuke jumped back, blushing even more. Misaki stared at the British woman before her, wearing a baggy, faded programming convention t-shirt.

She bent down to Ryuunosuke and whispered, "Is this what you had in mind?"

Hoping his completely flustered face gave an answer, Ryuunosuke got up and walked back in his room. He changed then crawled into his bed. Soon, he heard the door slam and the nervous boy felt something plop down next to him. He saw the locks of bright blonde hair around him.

He shifted uncomfortably, "Again..? "

"Of course, I was waiting all day for this!"

She turned her back to him, confusing Ryuunosuke, but then throwing herself against Ryuunosukes chest. He realized. what kind of position they we now in. It was what normal people call "spooning" and it was what he calls, "a gynophobic's worst nightmare." Every part of her body was against his. His whole body was shaking, as Rita calmly situated herself. She took his shaking arm and placed it around her waist. She rested her head on his other arm.

"Is this okay?" , she asked.

"Do I really have a choice... "

" No", she cheerfully said while giggling.

"If it wasn't for my raging gynophobia, I'd say it isn't terrible..."

"Aw.. ok, goodnight handsome. "

He groaned at her words, but noticed she was already asleep. Just the sight of her peacefully sleeping made him yawn. Before he knew it, he was fast asleep, with a woman in his arms.

The next day, Ryuunosuke woke up alone. He searched the room, and quickly saw Rita, with her shirt half off. Luckily only her stomach was exposed, but even that was enough to make Ryuunosuke scream, and pull the covers over his head.

"Good morning, sleepyhead!"

"I told you not to change when I'm in here!"

"Well, you were sleeping.. "

He frowned, "Hmph, whatever, just hurry it up."

She scrambled on some clothing.

"Done."

He pulled the covers off of his head, and blushed slightly.

"Agh.. why do you have to be so..."

He cut off his sentence, not wanting to say anymore.

"So pretty? Thank you Ryuunosuke!"

He forced an angry face, "I didn't even say that.."

She replied with only a wink and continued preparing herself. In awhile, they began to head out. It was getting close to winter, so the skies were grey, the temperature was low, enough to see breath, and the air was thin. Ryuunosuke brought his tablet, but was only going to turn it on when they arrived, knowing that the former freeloader was probably planning more indecencies on the way. To his surprise, she was completely calm and even more shocking, she was quiet. But he noticed that she wasn't even smiling.

"Um, is everything ok?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah everything's fine."

She smiled brightly and grabbed on to Ryuunosuke arm, and held it tightly. But he watched as her smile slowly disappeared.

"Promise me, no more crying ok?", she said in a rather depressing voice.

"Is that what you're worried about?"

"Ryuunosuke, you'll never understand how bad I feel when I see you cry, and I don't like it."

"That's understandable.. fine, I'll try, but the same thing goes for you."

She wiped her eyes in his shirt and nodded. "Her face seems so pale today", Ryuunosuke thought to himself, but soon thought nothing of it as they arrived at the cemetery. Most of the grave stones were covered in cobwebs and moss. When they arrived at her grave, Rita took a bouquet of flowers out of her bag and gave them to Ryuunosuke. He nodded in thanks, and placed the flowers. The blackhaired boy took out his tablet, propped it up on the ground, and turned it on. His AI immediately read the situation and went into a praying position. Rita quietly followed Maid-chan's actions. Ryuunosuke put his hand on the cold stone. He gulped, kneeled, and began silently telling her everything that he wanted to say. As he said his final words with his mother, he broke his promise with Rita, and tears began to escape his eyes. He looked away and attempted to contain them. He shot a quick glance at Rita, and he noticed she was also trying to contain her tears. Ending everything with his mother with a few last words, he stood up and went over to her. She bowed and looked up at Ryuunosuke. He held out a hand, she took it and pulled herself up. She took a tissue and silently wiped his tears. He sighed and grabbed his tablet, turning it off. He looked back at Rita, and before he could do anything, she ran in for a hug. He nervously put an arm around her waist, holding her close. He took the opportunity to cry on her shoulder. She buried her head in his chest and silently let the tears fall. After what felt like forever, Ryuunosuke let go.

Rita looked into his eyes and asked, "Is.. Is it over now?"

He nodded and stared right back into her big blue eyes, biting his lip.

He began walking as she followed. She walked behind him, and soon realized that the trip back was going to be painful. The British woman began to breath unevenly.

She felt her knees go weak, "Um.. Ryuunosuke.. C-Can we take.. a little break?"

He quickly turned around and noticed she was struggling for air. He dashed up to her.

"Hey.. are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah.. just need a.. little break."

Ryuunosuke has never seen Rita this pale. He moved his hand and went to place it on her forehead, but she forcefully swatted the arm away. Shocked Ryuunosuke stepped back. Rita looked down at her own shaking hand, as if it didn't belong to her.

She whispered, "I'm-I'm fine" and hurried away.

Ryuunosuke stared at the girl in disbelief. He now walked behind her, and with fear in his eyes, he watched her every move. He knew he had to do something, so he quickly ran up and grabbed her from behind, so she couldn't fight back.

He immediately placed a hand on her forehead, "Ice cold, of course", he said to himself.

Her body went limp in his arms, even if she wanted to escape, she wouldn't be able to. She closed her eyes and let him do whatever he wanted.

"It's just a cold..."

"Yeah right", he replied sarcastically.

He lifted her, and held her in his arms. She looked away in embarrassment. Luckily, everyone was at school when they arrived at Sakurasao. He laid her down on his bed, and prepared some tea. Frightened, the programmer's mind raced. So many questions popped up, and they were all left unanswered. The only thing he knew was that now, she needed his help.

Me: Oh man, that was the first time I wrote a chapter over 2,500 words.. and probably the last.

Kanda: It was an interesting chapter though... you covered a lot.

Me: I hope I did. Well, anyways I would love to hear everybody's opinions but it's 1 in the morning, and I need to get to sleep. So, anybody who is reading this, please review! Thanks it means a lotttt! (yawns and falls on the ground)

Rita: Erica-chan!

Ryuunosuke: Calm down, she's sleeping.

Rita: Whatever you say handsome! (brushes up against him)

Ryuunosuke: Do we have to do this now, Erica-chan's fingers are going to fall off.

Rita: Fine... but I'm sure we'll be back in her dreams! (winks)

Everyone: Goodnight Erica- chan!


	12. The Question without an Answer

For the next few days, Ryuunosuke took care of Rita. Her little cold quickly turned into a fiery fever. He changed tge cold cloth that was placed on her forehead, made her meals, held her hair while she vomited, and helped her get around. He even volunteerly slept with her, but only because she slept longer and better when he did. However, there were nights when he didn't get any sleep, either because of Rita's endless coughing, or a sudden rise in her temperature, causing him to change the wet cloth. But mostly, the cause of his lack of sleep was because he was always fearful of the future. As the days went by, Ryuunosuke got more and more worried because there was never a sign of her getting better. But finally, one day, he found some hope.

"Ryuunosuke! Wake up!"

The excited girl tapped the shoulder of the sleeping boy next to her.

"Huh? W-What is it?", The sleepy programmer said.

"I feel so much better today!"

"That's great, but I think I need to catch up on some sleep..."

He slowly closed his eyes again. Rita knew that he was up all night taking care of her, so she couldn't stop him. She was always so grateful for him. Although she always felt bad because she still felt uncomfortable with him seeing her this way, she was always thankful that he was around. He made her feel so much better just by being there for her. She grabbed his arm and wrapped it around her waist, and she snuck into a cuddling position. She felt so comfortable, and knew herself that a few more hours of sleep wouldn't hurt.

Soon, Ryuunosuke woke up with Rita in his arms. He remembered the conversation they had earlier and immediately went to feel her forehead. She was right, it wasn't as hot as it usually was. He sighed in relief, and got up to prepare breakfast.

He wasn't almost out the door when he heard, "Ryuunosuke!"

The introvert spun his head around, seeing the blonde sitting up, with a huge smile on her face. With the curtains open, her hair and eyes sparkled in the sunlight. He felt his face get flustered, as a blush began to appear. His mouth was open, and his eyes widened at the beautiful sight.

"Ryuunosuke?"

"Uh.. W-W-What... "

" Why are you looking at me like that? "

Embarrassed, he quickly turned around.

" Um.. It's nothing..."

He scratched the back of his head strangely. Somehow, he had the urge to compliment her, but had no idea how to. He slowly looked back at her, and they quickly locked eyes. He felt his face getting more red, so he quickly turned back around.

"Ryuunosuke.. what is it? "

"Um.. it's just that.. Uh.. you look.. um.. you kinda look attractive..."

Her smile got even bigger, as her blush grew more strong. Those words made her heart pound like crazy, knowing that he needed a lot of courage just to say that.

"Thank you, handsome."

He groaned and changed the subject, "Um.. W-What do you want for breakfast...?"

"I don't know, let me go down with you! "

She encouringly put her arms out. Ryuunosuke's eye twitched. He sighed and walked over to her. He lifted her arm around his neck for support. He had done this before, but this time he was a lot more nervous. He always told himself, "I'm only doing this for her sake, not for mine." or "I'm the only one here, anybody would do this for her." However, today was different. He couldn't convince himself. I guess he could say he was doing this because he wanted to. But of course, he could never tell anyone that.

Once the two were both on their feet, Rita carelessly let go and began walking on her own down the hallway.

"Hey, Um.. are you sure you can be doing that? "

" Yep! "

She approached the stairwell. Ryuunosuke ran up to her, She only put one hand on his shoulder, and the other on the railing. She slowly made her way down, and reached the bottom with no trouble. She looked at Ryuunosuke who was smiling right back at her. That was the first time she had done that.

"Good job. " He said.

She replied with a giggle and let go again. She made her way to the kitchen, where she was trampled with questions by the others. Throughout the week, the members of Sakurasao constantly asked Ryuunosuke if they could see Rita, but he usually said she was sleeping or that it wasn't a good time. It was normally never a good time. She has been spending her days vomiting, crying, or talking to her angry father over the phone. Ryuunosuke often heard him yelling, and it never sounded good. Rita also never mentioned the trip to hospital or what she was battling now to her father, knowing her father would force her to come home immediately. However, her father still wanted her back as soon as possible because of her job as a painter, but Rita lied and claimed she had to take care of some important things in Japan. Once the conversation got so rough, Rita actually asked Ryuunosuke if he could leave the room when she was talking to her father. He has been wondering what that conversation was about.

Anyways, today seemed to be a somewhat better day for the young British woman, making it a good day for everyone else, and that's really all that matters. However he can't help but get depressed at the sight of Rita's pale face, her fading blonde hair, and her obvious fake smile. He watched as she coughed, stared at the ground for a few minutes, then look back up and act as if she was perfectly fine. He could tell that she was trying to be normal, but he knew how much she was psychically struggling by just doing ordinary things. He also knew that she was hiding something important, and it seemed to be depressing her. It was so hard for him to watch, it ripped his heart in half. He couldn't take it any longer.

"Um.. How about we go back up now.. I want to talk to you.. "

She glared at him for a bit, then solemnly agreed. He helped her up, and stood her on her feet. Her knees buckled, and she almost fell, but Ryuunosuke caught her. He lifted her onto his back and took her upstairs. The other members of Sakurasao watched in sorrow, at their poor friend. They never knew Rita's condition was so bad that sometimes she couldn't stand or walk. They also never knew how much Ryuunosuke was doing for her. They depressingly sighed as they continued with there day. Kanda got even more depressed as he heard the sobs coming from Ryuunosuke's room later that day.

"Hey, tell me what's going on."

"I'm sick, what else do you want to know?"

"No, with your father."

"I- I don't want to ta-"

He cut her off and grabbed her shoulders.

"Tell me, I can't stand to see you like this. "

She gasped at his persistence. She had no other choice but to tell him now, even though she knew he would get hurt from it.

" M-My father is really angry and he is forcing me home really soon... he also said that if I don't come home soon, he will never let me come back here.. and.. and.. "

She couldn't finish. She dug her head into Ryuunosuke forehead letting the tears drip on his shirt. He immediately wrapped his arms around her.

"A-And what?"

She shook her head and covered her face with her hands.

"He.. He.. threatened an arranged marriage..."

It all began to make sense to the once confused programmer. He found his answer to why she asked him to step out of the room while she was on the phone. He understood why she was acting so strange. His heart stopped beating as he mentally broke down. He held her tightly as she cried on his shoulder.

"R-Ryuunosuke... I can't live without you... and I dont think my health is good enough to go on a plane.. and if I tell my father, he definitely will never let me come back...W-What do I do?"

He was still in shock about the whole situation to even think straight. He soon realized that it was a battle between her health and her love. If anything happened with her health, they would both get hurt physically and emotionally, and if they never got to see each other again, they would still both be hurt. And the arranged marriage... she would only suffer more through that. Not only would she suffer, but he would lose his mind knowing that she would be with another man. He thought of the logical solution. Unsurprisingly, it was difficult to find. What were they supposed to do?

Me: Ooh... I'm adding more plot...

Rita: Ouch...

Me: ITS ALRIGHT RITA, I LOVE YOU.

Rita: Thanks, but my heart belongs to Ryuunosuke.

Me: RYUUNOSUKE, I LOVE YOU TOO!

Ryuunosuke: Um, it seems as if the Former Freeloader has already claimed me..

Me: Aw..

Misaki: DO YOU LOVE ME ERICA-CHAN?

Me: Of course I love you! But you have Jin... I'll just go for Nanami! She has no excuse... Lol...

Nanami: Um...

Me: CHANGING THE SUBJECT..

Sorata: To what?

Me: Um... RyuuRi! (Shoves Rita onto Ryuunosuke)

Ryuunosuke: (catches her and she is now in his arms )

Ryuunosuke and Rita: (blush and look at each other)

Ryuunosuke: G-G-GET OFF ME! ERICA-CHAN, WHY!

Me: Sorry.. I love you guys too much..

Misaki: WE ALL LOVE DRAGON AND RITTAN BEING CUTE TOGETHER! RYUURI POWER! (throws fist in air)

Ryuunosuke: (backs away slowly)

Me: RYUURI POWER!


	13. The Resolution

"Rita..."

He held her closely as she quietly cried in his shoulder.

"I-I think I should go back to England."

"No! Rita, don't! Please.. who knows what could happen to you when you're on the plane! What if you-"

She pulled away forcefully, cutting him off. The frightened boy knew she was getting angry and letting her emotions control her.

She yelled, "What other fucking choice do I have Ryuunosuke! I would rather die than be in a world without you! You just don't understand how fucking terrible of a life I'll live if you aren't in it!"

She turned away from him as more tears ran down her slowly made her way to his bed to sit down, not being able to stand any longer. He turned his head and watched the agonizing woman.

"Rita... "

Realizing what she said, the blonde looked away from embarrassment and regret. After what she just let out, all she wanted to do is crawl in a corner and cry. She meant every word she said, but never expected to yell or curse. She hasn't gotten that worked up in awhile.

" Oh my god, Ryuunosuke, I'm sorry.. I didn't mean to yell.. "

" It's okay. Everyone has to yell sometimes... I'm just glad you are letting your emotions out instead of hiding it. "

She said nothing, but slightly nodded at his words.

"But.. Rita.. if you go and something happens to you I would blame myself for letting you go.. "

He sat down next to her and she wrapped her arms around him. She began to try and understand the situation from his point of view. Ryuunosuke felt that she was shaking, but then realized he was shaking as well. They said nothing as Rita quietly sobbed and Ryuunosuke let tears fall from his face.

"Ryuunosuke, I promise.. I'll be okay.. I know I can do it. It's shocking, but I definitely have been through worse.."

He looked at her, completely overwhelmed with depression at her last sentence. He cried harder and hugged her tighter.

"Rita! You..You know you don't deserve this, dammit!"

She gulped and easily got lost in thought. His words were so powerful to her.

"Ryuunosuke... It doesn't matter if I deserve this or not, this is just my life. It's sad, I know, but I'm use to it. It hurts, but I know I can get through it, I have to... for you. Trust me, you being here right now, makes everything a whole lot better. More then you can ever imagine. Ryuunosuke, you're the best thing in my life..."

She grabbed him tighter and looked him deeply in his eyes.

"You're the one that keeps me happy. You give me a reason to keep going."

She placed a hand on his cheek. She slowly moved closer and pressed her lips against his. She could feel is tears drip onto her face. His heart pounded out of his chest and he knew she could feel it. Their lips were locked for a long time, and when they broke, Ryuunosuke was crying even harder. He kept repeating her name as if it was the only word he could say. She put her arms around his waist.

"Thank you, Ryuunosuke. "

" I'll.. I'll go with you to England. I'm not letting you out of my sight. "

She looked down in thought but then met his glance and slightly smiled.

"Okay, it might be awhile before you return because my father is going to be quite mad when he sees my condition, but he'll be thankful that you are with me... so he'll forget about the marriage arrangement. "

"... We aren't suggesting anything here are we? "

She laughed, " Maybe.. "

She brushed her hand down his chest and seductively smiled. He closed his eyes and sighed.

"... Freeloader..."

"Fine, not for awhile... "

He glared at her and smirked, then got up from the bed. She giggled and Ryuunosuke knew he had to treasure that laugh.

He told Rita to get some rest. He got a cloth for her forehead and tucked her in bed. His blush got worse, because of her appearance once again. He knew he was crazy, but seeing her like this really made his heart beat fast, but it also made it break. Her currently faded blonde hair was glistening in the sunlight, her face was slightly red from her temperature, she was always looking away from embarrassment, and now here eyes were puffy from crying. Why does he find this cute? It was a mystery.

He started packing his things, when realizing at some point, he would have to tell the others about this unexpected trip. He thought it was the perfect time, because she was peacefully sleeping. He made his was down the stairs and noticed they were all gathered in the kitchen. They all stared at him, until Ryuunosuke began to speak.

"I have an announcement."

"Did you finally confess your love? ", Jin said teasingly.

The introvert blushed and put on a stern face.

"No! This is really important. She's going back to England. Probably tomorrow."

"What!? " The group gasped in shock. Then, sad faces spread across the room.

" Aw.. Why does Rittan have to leave so soon..? " Misaki said.

"Her father wants her home immediately. "

" Wait.. I thought she said that she couldn't go on planes for awhile.. " Kanda said, questioning the programmer.

Ryuunosuke sighed as a brighter blush made its way onto his cheeks.

"... That's why.. I'm going with her."

Embarrassed, he crossed his arms and glared away.

He heard the gasp and "aw's". He took a quick shot at the bunch and saw them all with huge smiles on their faces and all staring directly at him, making him feel uncomfortable.

"Will Rita be okay if you are with her? ", Shiina asked quietly.

He felt their eyes get filled with curiosity.

"She said she will be, but I have no idea what will happen."

"You'll take good care of her right? ", Shiina said, highly concerned for her best friend's health.

He opened his eyes and raised his eyebrow.

" I'll do the best of my abilities. "

She nodded, seeming content with his answer. Ryuunosuke got closer to Shiina.

" You're still worried, do you want to go see her?"

Without answering, Shiina stood up and made her up the stairs. Ryuunosuke followed as they approached his door.

"She was sleeping, but she might be awake now."

As soon as Shiina walked in, Rita's eyes quickly opened. The British girl removed the cloth from her forehead and sat up. Shiina ran up to her and hugged her. Ryuunosuke stood in the doorway and watched the two friends reunite once again. He decided to leave the two girls alone and made his way back downstairs. In a few hours, he heard Shiina on the stairs. He got up and approached her.

While walking past him, she whispered, "Good job," just loud enough so that he could hear.

"W-What?"

"You take good care of her. You make her happy. She really loves you, Dragon. "

He watched as Shiina turned back around and continued walking down the hall, as his brain replayed the surprisingly powerful words she just said.

Me: Oops, couldn't think of an ending for this chapter so I just stopped.

Misaki: Aw.. Erica-chan, this is making me cry to hard!

Me: Sorry..

Misaki: I need something to cheer me up...

Me: Want some CANON?!,

Misaki: CANONNN!?

Rita: hehe alright (grabs Ryuunosuke's face)

Ryuunosuke: W-WHAT ARE YOU DOING FREELOADER!

Rita: (kisses him forcefully)

Ryuunosuke: (grabs her waist and kisses her back)

Rita: (blushes and begins making out)

Misaki: OH MY LORD GOING TO DIE FROM TOO MUCH CANONNN!

Jin: Wow, they're still going.

Aoyama: Rita! Ryuunosuke! W-What's happening! Don't forget any further!

Kanda: Um.. guys... get a room..

Misaki: NOO STAY RIGHT HERE I NEED TO GET MY CAMERA!

Jin: Oh boy..

Rita: (breaks the kiss from lack of air)

Ryuunosuke: (dying)

Misaki: (runs back in the room with a camera) Aww it's over already!

Rita: hehehe, not yet... (grabs his face again, not letting him get away)

Ryuunosuke: F-Freeloader.. Not again!

Rita: Too late.. (kisses him passionately)

Misaki: (takes pictures from ALL angles)

Me: Oops this is getting long, I have to end it sorry Misaki-senpai!

Misaki: Nooooo

Rita: (pulls away and blushes) Did you like that, Ryuunosuke?

Ryuunosuke: (blushes) Um.. It wasn't that bad..

Rita: Can we go again?

Me: Nope, my fingers hurt from typing.

Ryuunosuke: (sighs) Thank God..

Misaki: (showing Rita the pictures)

Rita: Wow...It was really getting heated...

Me: OK, what a day, byeeee everybody! See you soon

Everyone: By Erica-chan! 


	14. A Small Vacation With a Huge Meaning

Me: I'M BACKKKKK

Misaki: Goodness, Erica-chan, you haven't updated for like a week! Where have you been!I NEED MORE CANNNOOOOOONNNN

Me: SORRY BLAH, I'VE BEEN BUSY.. BUT DONT WORRY I'LL PUT A FAIR AMOUNT OF CANON IN THIS CHAPTERRRRR!

Ryuunosuke : Oh boy...

Rita: What, are you afraid? Here let me hold you...

Ryuunosuke: I'm afraid of you!

Rita: Let me fix that... (pushes him to the ground and makes out with him)

Kanda: Rita-san.. I don't think you're helping him...

Misaki: CANOOOONNNN!

Shiina: Can-on?

Misaki: CANNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-

Jin: (puts hand over her mouth)

Ryuunosuke: (breathing heavily) F-FREELOADER, THAT...

Rita: That...?

Ryuunosuke: ...

Rita: What... Oh, wait, did it actually help?!

Ryuunosuke: (Looked at the ground blushing)

Rita: YESSS! Let's go! (Grabbed him and dragged him to his room)

Shiina: What are they doing?

Kanda: ...

Jin: ...

Nanami: ...

Misaki: CANON BABIES!?

Me: WOOPS THIS WENT A LITTLE TO FAR... ON WITH THE STORY!

Ryuunosuke woke up with a bunch of blonde hair sprawled across his chest. Still, like every other morning, he freaked out and jumped out of bed. This morning, however, he hit himself in the head for letting his gynophobia get the best of him. Today was a very important and scary day, and he needed to be with her now to keep her happy. The one thing Ryuunosuke could never lose was her smile. No, not the fake one, he would actually be glad to lose that one, but no, her true smile. The one that tells him that she's happy. His weakness is that smile.

Shaking the wonderful thought from his mind, he continued packing. He had no idea how long he would be staying, so therefore, packing was difficult.

Soon, he spotted two big blue eyes open behind him. He walked over to her, placed a hand on her face.

"How are you feeling?", he said quietly, scared of the answer.

"Um.. Not exactly in the best shape.. but I can move so I'll be alright. "

He glared at her, with regret in his eyes for letting her go. But he knew that she would just be a wreck and she would probably hate him if he told her not to go. He kept telling himself that at least he would be there if anything went wrong.

He helped her out of bed, and she let go of him immediately.

" Yeah, see I can walk just fine, don't worry, okay?"

"Nope, I'm still going to worry."

"Aghh.. stubborn as always today? ", she said giggling.

He rolled his eyes as she playfully joked around. It always made him wonder how she could be so positive in the worse situations.

"Hey, if it makes you feel any better, I'll just take some sleeping pills and sleep the whole time. "

He nodded in contentment and continued packing on the floor. He suddenly felt something pull his hair.

" Mr. Akasaka, you smell VERY nice today."

He turned his head at the seductive voice, nevertheless to see Rita, kneeling behind him, playing with his hair with an indecent look on her face.

"F-Freeloader ... "

She got up and pressed against his back. Her hand traveled up the front of his shirt. She always wanted to see him shirtless.

" W-WHAAA NO! AH!"

She grabbed the bottom of his shirt and pulled it off. She was really impressed and her face showed it. She wasn't expecting him to be this fit, knowing his running abilites. He was toned, but not too much, and that's just the way Rita likes it.

"FREELOADER, WHY IS MY SHIRT OFF?!"

"Why are you so perfect?" She replied back seductively.

Blushing, he muttered, ".. I'm not perfect.."

"You're perfect to me. ", she said, with the biggest smile on her face.

He rolled his eyes as if her words didn't bother him, but his heart was definitely bothered.

"Define "perfect".", he said with a fake grim expression.

"Akasaka Ryuunosuke ", she said proudly.

A small blush appeared. He huffed, rolled his eyes and looked away.

"Oh come on, that was too cheesy."

"Well, is this good for you?"

She quickly winked and went in for a kiss. Ryuunosuke's eyes widened, as he helplessly let her caress his lips. Damn, she was playing with his heart again. She really had him on strings. She broke the kiss, and looked into his deep eyes, inches from his face. It was like he had fallen under her spell, and he couldn't tell if he liked that or not.

"D-Don't you have a bag to pack?"

Without breaking the stare, she nonchalantly said, " A few bags actually. " She ended her sentence giggling.

He sighed and stood up breaking the closeness between them.

" Finish packing, we have to leave soon."

Still wanting to mess around, the girl put a sad face on. Glaring at her, the boy felt a little bad.

"Suck it up, we'll have the whole day together, giving you more time to rape me." He said sarcastically.

"That sounds good." She said winking and giggling.

Ryuunosuke began to blush and walked towards the door.

"Finish packing. As soon as you're done we'll leave."

He exited the room and she did her job.

In a while, they were all gathered in the van Misaki got. The rest of Sakurasao offered to come with to see the pair off. It was a silent ride until they reached the airport, where things started to get emotional. All of the girls were hugging Rita with tears in their eyes. Especially Shiina, who couldn't dare to see her beat friend leave in such conditions. Rita tried calming them down, but it was pointless. Soon, Rita was also in tears and they were just all comforting each other. It made Ryuunosuke cringe. It was like an emotional waterfall. He hated these tear jerking things. Then, the guys approached him and wished him good luck.

Kanda, who was especially sad, said, "Hey man, I'm really proud of you. I can't believe the introverted, gynophobic programmer I knew a year ago is doing this now. You really have to thank her for changing you so much. You're like a whole new person, Ryuunosuke, and I'm sure you enjoy your new self just as much as we do. Take great care of her man. "

Kanda hugged him as Ryuunosuke blushed and stared at the wall, thinking about all the deep words he just said. He didn't want them to see how much he was actually thinking about that small speech.

"Kanda, I'm just going on a small vacation to England, don't get so worked up. "

He looked at Kanda and smiled weakly. The guys then nervously laughed, knowing this trip was much more then a "small vacation".

"Hey, Ryuunosuke, bring her back, okay?"

He slightly nodded somewhat proudly, with a smile he definitely couldn't help. Then, the time soon came when their flight was announced over the loud speakers. Ryuunosuke looked over at Rita, who was still in the arms of all the girls.

"Oi, Former Freeloader, let's not miss the flight."

She looked over at him with a depressing smile that put a knife to his heart. She said a sad goodbye, and got closer to Ryuunosuke.

"Best wishes, to the both of you. ", Jin said.

"We'll miss you guys so much! ", Misaki said, wiping her eyes.

"Oh, you guys! " Rita, in tears again, ran over to the group and gave them one last heart-warming hug.

"Bye... I promise I'll be back soon!"

"Bye, we'll all miss you! "

The British woman walked back over to the programmer. She grabbed his hand, and took one last look at her wonderful friends. She changed her glance to the wonderful guy she was holding hands with. He was doing so much for her, it made her heart explode. She then thought about all the troubles she gave them. "This is for the best..", she indecisively thought to herself.

Soon, they were both situated in the plane. They sat next to each other, and Rita placed her hand on top of his. She let her fingers grasp around his hand. She was getting more and more nervous by the second. Ryuunosuke could read her like a book, and almost immediately knew.

"If all you are going to do is be nervous, you might as well sleep."

She nodded and took out the pills. With only one glance at the bottle, Ryuunosuke could tell that the pill was very powerful. She turned her head in embarrassment, quickly threw two capsules in her mouth, and gulped down the water. She hated taking medicine in front of people. It made her feel different and isolated. Even if they were just sleeping pills, she still felt terrible. Ryuunosuke, noticing her strange expression, knew exactly what she was thinking. He sighed and gulped, hating when she was like this. He grabbed her hand and wrapped his hand around hers, holding it tightly. They weren't even looking at each other, but Rita's heart still raced. She slowly turned her head to look at him. He was looking away from embarrassment.

"Ryuunosuke... "

He shot a glance at her, but quickly looked away, wanting to contain the crazy beating of his heart. She put her other hand on top of their hands. She gently rubbed his hand comfortingly. Then she moved her hand to his shoulder, making him look at her.

"Ryuunosuke... I love you."

His face went red as he gulped looked away again, not wanting to faint. It was a pretty depressing sight in Rita's eyes, as the one she loved just turned away from her. She sigh and and let go of his shoulder, but tightened their hands. After that, she quickly fell into a deep sleep. Once she was sleeping, he immediately felt bad about what he did. Ryuunosuke caught a glance at the blonde, and once again, found himself in utter amazement at her beauty. He always catches himself staring at her, and always for the same reason. And with that same reason, came the same excuse. He told himself, "She's pretty, anyone who has eyes can see that. " Her long blonde hair, her stunning figure, those big blue eyes, and her perfectly shaped lips made Ryuunosuke's heart skip beats. But with that, once again, he always had excuses. Worst of all, he kept making excuses when he asked himself if he loved her. But one of his excuses were true, "The more he loves her, the more he gets hurt." Sometimes his mind drifted off and was thinking, "..but what if it's worth it?"

Ryuunosuke cleared his mind because he knew he should be thinking about other, more important, things, like what he was going to say to her father when he sees her so sick. He devised a small plan, and really hoped it would work. He took another glance at the sleeping beauty next to him. He looked down at their enclosed hands, and realized he was squeezing her hand to death. He really didn't want to loose up either. Her hand was small, soft and warm. With this comfort, he soon drifted off to sleep.

He woke up to the noise of the loud speaker saying that their destination was near. He turned to Rita, who was still sleeping. He took his free hand and nudged her gently on the shoulder.

"Oi, Former Freeloader.. Hey.. time to wake up."

The girl didn't open her eyes. Ryuunosuke looked at her with a grim expression and sighed. He gently tapped the side of her cheek. His gynophobic was going crazy, but what else was he supposed to do? It frustrated him. He tapped her cheek again. His hand traveled near her hair. He realized his fear was loosening up a bit, because she wasn't awake. He grinned knowing that this a good, rare time. He took her hair and played with it. He flipped it around, wrapped it around his hand, sniffed it, and put his fingers through it. He couldn't stop smiling and he had no idea why. He must look like a weirdo, but he didn't care. This went on for awhile, until he heard her quietly giggle. His face instantly went red. He looked at her face, and her eyes were still closed. A small blush was placed on her cheeks. She giggled more and finally opened her eyes.

"F-F-Freeeloader... h-how long have you been awake..?"

"The whole time. ", she said with a smile, placing her hand on the cheek he tapped and happily fixing her hair. His hands immediately covered his completely flustered face and he looked away.

" You know, you're really too cute. "

She said giggling and placed her head on his shoulder, with her arm holding his. He was so embarrassed and so caught up on the fact that she was faking, he didn't even notice how close she was too him. She noticed, and took his hand and placed it on her heart. He felt it racing.

"Just you playing with my hair made me lose my mind and my heart go crazy. I swear, it was so hard to stay still. "

She laughed as he gulped.

Curios, the boy barely got out, "Um... freeloader.. do you ever get nervous? "

" Of course I do silly, every time I look at you.. every time you look at me... every time you smile... every time you frown.. every time I do something "indecent"... every time you say anything to me... every time we touch... every time I say I love you... "

He gulped and looked at the ground.

Interrupting her, he said demandingly, "Why? Why do you do it if you get so nervous?"

"Becaue I love you. Duh."

She gave a short giggle .

"I never said I didn't like getting nervous... "

She blushed and smiled, looking at Ryuunosuke. They stared at each other for a while. He felt his heart race like crazy. But he agreed with her, this "nervous" feeling wasn't that bad. And he was definitely willing to get use to it.

-—-—-

Me: Wow, didn't expect that to be over 2000 words... and I actually covered less things then I wanted to...

Misaki: Oh well, THE MORE CANON THE BETTER!

Jin: Did those two even come out of the room yet?

Kanda: Nope.

Misaki: DRAGONNN RITTTAAAANNN TAKE A BREAK ALREADY!

(Ryuunosuke stumbles out of the room, barely being able to stand on his two feet.)

Ryuunosuke: Damn, that woman...

Rita: Shut up.. you know you liked it.

Misaki: SO YOU GUYS WERE DOING DIRTY THINGS... IS IT CANON BABY TIME?

Ryuunosuke: (faints)

Rita: (blushing)...Um, we didn't go that far...

Misaki : (leans over Ryuunosuke) DRAGON! WHAT ARE YOU DOING, LEAVING YOUR WOMAN UNSATISFIED!

Jin: Misaki, you are screaming at an unconscious body.

Rita: Actually, I'm pretty satisfied.

Misaki: Oh well, CANON IS CANON! Shiina, come up with a plan for more canon.

Kanda: ...

Jin: You're really asking Shiina for a plan?

Nanami: ...

Shiina: ... (arms form a C)

Misaki: PLAN C IT IS THEN!

Me: WHATT! NO, NO KILLING. THIS IS ENDING. DONE. SEE YOU GUYS NEXT TIME. Oh, and please review, those things really help! Ok bye

Everyone: Bye Erica-chan!


	15. A Painting Worth A Thousand Words

Finally, the plane has come to a stop and they were allowed to get off. Ryuunosuke got up first and grabbed both of their carry-on's. Rita then got up, but stumbled, and grabbed Ryuunosukes arm for balance.

"Rita! What's.."

"I'm fine! Just a little light-headed that's all."

She loosened the grip on his arm. He looked at her with concern in his eyes. He didn't believe her. She reached for her bag, which was in his hand. He pulled away quickly.

"I got it."

She quickly looked down at the floor. She hated people going out of her way to help her.

Ryuunosuke, reading her mind, said, "Just accept the help, and stop acting like you don't need it."

Her eyes widened at his words. She swallowed the lump in her throat and nodded, knowing he was right. They slowly walked out, with Rita's hand on his shoulder. They were in the airport, when a driver with a sign was spotted by Ryuunosuke. They made their way over to him. The driver lead them to a cab and they were off.

During the drive, Rita was still dozing off from the pill, so she laid her head on his shoulder. He flinched, and was about to tell her to get off, when he noticed she was already sound asleep. "Great, that means I have to wake her up again.." He replayed those events in his head. He cringed, and pushed the memory out of his mind. After driving for a half hour, the driver said they were getting close. He looked at the woman on his shoulder. He tried just moving his shoulder to get her off. Not working, he took his hand and gently pushed her away from him. She suddenly opened her eyes and immediately kissed him on the lips. His eyes widened and he began to freak out. Rita grabbed his body and pushed him against the side of the car. Her hand trickled down his back and he started to shake. She grasped the back of his shirt and placed her head on his chest. She listened to the fast beating of his heart.

"F-Freeloader! AHHH! Stop surprising me like that!"

She didn't reply. His arms trembled, and he didn't know if she actually needed comforting or not. He looked down at her, and saw her somewhat depressing smile. She smiled, but yet had a sad look in her eyes. He is wondered what was behind this sudden change in emotions. Not caring if she needed his comfort or not, his arms moved to her back, and he held her tightly, but gently. He watched as her smile slowly turned upside down, and her eyes began to fill with tears.

"Hey, don't cry. "

She rubbed her face on his shirt.

"I'm sorry.. I just-"

He cut her off as he met her stare, and he pressed his finger against his lips, motioning for her to not make an excuse. He quickly threw his arms around her back and held her closely again. He tucked his head into her shoulder and closed his eyes.

" We should both be happy that you are here now and that we are together, at this very moment, so there's no need to worry about the future and let it ruin the present. Ok?"

She nodded in his embracement.

"Ryuunosuke, really, thank you.. so much... "

" I'm just doing what any thoughtful person would do..."

"To me, you're doing much, much more. "

He knew she was right. If he was only doing this to be respectful, his heart wouldn't be beating this fast. He wouldn't be in a car in England right now. He wouldn't be holding her so tightly. He wouldn't go out of his way to make her happy. But, he was doing all of that now.

He lifted his head from her shoulder and switched positions. He patted her head as she quietly cried on his shoulder. He was expecting this, because he understood how much Rita's been going through, and she's been hiding her emotions for a long time. But he knew he couldn't let her father see her like this.

"Hey, um.. how about you hold in your emotions for a bit longer, I don't think your father will appreciate seeing you like this..."

She moved away and wiped her eyes. Ryuunosuke handed her tissues that he already had packed in his bag. He sighed and looked at her as she went back to holding in her emotions. He always knew that she was, but now, it hurt him more than ever. He watched as she pulled out her bag and applied some makeup. He had to look away because he couldn't stand to watch. He looked out the window, at the close houses and now foreign look of the town. From all the events that happened, he totally forgot he was in a different country. He pushed all of his worries behind and looked out the window, enjoying the scenery. But, soon the car came to a stop. He looked out the opposite window, to see a somewhat large building. He might of expected it to be a huge mansion, but this place was smaller, but still large for a house. Ryuunosuke stepped out of the car and looked around at the new place he was in. Rita soon called him over to escort her. They walked side by side down the long driveway. He stood straight and tried to act as elegantly as he could, noticing that the inside of the building was more fancy then the outside. Her father was waiting for her on the other side of the door. He was a tall, scary looking man. He had short blonde hair, and he wore a suit. His face changed for stern and impatient, to a concerned and confused look. There was a death-defying silence that made Ryuunosuke shrivel.

"Um...Mr. Ainsworth, may I speak to you.. alone?"

He nervously looked up at the man.

"And you are? "

" Oh, excuse me, I am Akasaka Ryuunosuke. "

" Mm.. yes, my daughter has said a lot about you. "

Ryuunosuke gulped and scratched the back of his head. Rita awkwardly stood back, having no idea what to do. Her father soon started walking off, signaling only Ryuunosuke to come with. Once they were gone, Rita stumbled to sit in a chair, because now she was even more light-headed.

"Um, sir, when Fre-R-Rita.. was visiting in Japan, she got a little sick... However, unfortunately, I have had experience with this same illness, and I took care of her... when she told me that she had to come back, I was totally against it, but she said that if she stays for any longer, she might never be able to come back. Now, I hope you know how much your daughter loves to visit, and it would absolutely break her heart if she could never come again. That's why, with her health being so questionable, I came with her. "

" Thank you, young sir, I regret having her come here so quickly. However, I really appreciate you bringing her here safety. I understand that you had to drop everything and come all the way here, all for my daughter's safety. And now, thanks to you, I know how much going to Japan means to her."

Ryuunosuke shook his head in agreement. There was a small silence, and about 5 minutes later, the older man began to speak.

"So, Mr. Akasaka, Rita's birthday is coming up, and if she is healthy enough, I'd be willing to give her the gift that she has been wanting for a long time. "

The programmer perked his eye in interest.

"The gift of letting her move to Japan."

His eyes widened at the blonde man's words. He tensed up, and tried to stop his expression from changing. It didn't work. A small blush appeared on his cheeks and a lump got caught in his throat. He struggled to keep a straight face. He suddenly got lost in thought. It was only less than a month ago when he would be absolutely terrified of this idea. What changed? Is he still terrified now? What would he face show if he wasn't trying to keep a straight face? Would it be a smile? He didn't really want to answer any of those questions.

"I assume she would be staying at Sakurasou? "

"Until she's out of highschool"

"Well, where will she live then? "

The English man chuckled at the young boy.

" We'll just have to see, now won't we? "

Ryuunosuke blushed harder and glared away. The older man laughed again, with Ryuunosuke not knowing what was so funny.

" Well, young man, it was a pleasure meeting you. There is an empty bedroom across from Rita's. No sneaking in at night, ok? "

Ryuunosuke's poor face was completely red now, as he kept looking around the room nervously.

"Now, that's a stupid rule, break it if you want. Have fun!"

The old man happily waved and exited the room.

Ryuunosuke got up, and was barely able to walk from embarrassment.

"Wow, even more indecent then his daughter", he said to himself, smirking.

He carried his things up the stairwell, and examined the multiple rooms he was passing. He saw some lounges, studies, and rooms just filled with books. He then came across a room full of paintings. Curious, he stepped inside. He gazed at all the paintings on the wall.

"They.. They're beautiful..."

He couldn't stop looking at the amazing works planted all over the room. He sometimes completely forgot that Rita was a professional painter. He knew that she wasn't as good as Shiina, but she was still absolutely amazing. He spun in circles, not being able to get enough looks at the mesmerizing art pieces. His programming skills were nothing compared to her painting skills.

He was lost in a daze, staring at one of her most famous paintings.

"Guess who gave me inspiration for that one... "

He whipped around to see a familiar woman leaning against the door frame.

She winked and pointed at him.

" I always wanted to show you this room, to thank you. "

He stood in shock, "But.. I never did anything.."

She walked to the middle of the room and threw her arms out.

"This is what you did! All of it! It was all because of you. These paintings... are filled with all of my emotions and feelings for you. I couldn't possibly do any of this without you. "

He looked around the room again. He saw paintings filled with such bright colors that screamed happiness. He saw some pictures that were swirled with darkness. He easily guessed what they were about. He saw pictures that wee filled with red and pink. He saw some that we collages of purple and blue. Then, he drew his attention back to her most famous painting. There was a large blotch of a black and gray swirl right in the center, as the swirl extended, it faded into the background. It was surrounded by a bright yellow color, that was filling the background. He then saw this fine line of yellow, that was making its way into the center of the blackness. It was an absolutely breathtaking picture. He knew there was some meaning behind it. And he knew it was him.

"See, anybody who knew us, and probably you yourself, would automatically think that you are the blackness. But, in reality, I always thought of it as the other way around."

She stood beside him and sighed, looking at her own mysterious work of art.

"See that's why I love our relationship.. Now that I look at this, either of us could be the darkness, because we both have some darkness in us, and we always help each other out... "

She had to stop speaking because she had to wipe her eyes. Ryuunosuke was absolutely speechless. He didn't know if he was more starstruck at the painting or at her words. Her words were so... true. It was so unbelievable how much meaning was behind this picture. He couldn't stand to believe that he'd be the reason she would paint something like this. And that he affected her so much...

As every second passed, his heart beated faster. She suddenly giggled and looked up at him with her big, blue, teary eyes. She looked so beautiful, he felt dizzy. She quickly grabbed the back of his head, pulled him in, and kissed him. As soon as they broke, it all went black.

Me: Oops, I didn't know how to end this chapter so he just fainted XD

Ryuunosuke: ... Could you make me a little more manlier?

Misaki: Ooohh I wonder why he wants to be more manlier...

Rita: Hehe... I know.. (winks)

Misaki: WHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Ryuunosuke: (blushing) F-Freeloader!

Nanami & Kanda: What's going on here...

Misaki: (attempting to whisper) Rittan knows why Dragon wants to be more manly! Do you think it has to do with something... (leans closer) .. under the covers?

Kanda & Nanami: ...

Misaki: !

Jin: ...

Shiina: ...

Rita: (blushing) Um... whispering isn't really you're forte, Misaki...

Misaki: (Notices the unconscious Dragon) Ohhh...

Rita: And I'm pretty sure he wants to be more manly in the story because he wants to protect me...(face turns dark red)

Misaki: AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH...

Jin: You know, I think it's funny too see you blush Rita. But more like cute.

Shiina: (emotionless face, monotone voice) I agree.

Kanda & Nanami: Mhm.

Jin: You guys were together for like this whole thing... Erica-chan! Aren't you team Mashiro!

Me: Of course, I don't know why it's just easier to put those two together...

Misaki: ...HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH... (Jin covers her mouth)

Jin: Shh...

Misaki: I CAN NOT. KAWAIIIIII OVERLOADDDDD

Jin: (sighs) Oh come on, you're more excited than Rita.

Rita: Um... I-I dont think that's possible...

Misaki : AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

Me: OMG.. lol gotta end this chapter here, see ya soon!


	16. With No Breaks, Comes A Breakdown

She caught the fainting boy in her arms. She kneeled on the ground and placed his head on her lap. It was absolutely crazy how much she cared about this boy. Of course, she didn't really like it when he fainted, it made her feel guilty. But, somehow, she thought it was kind of cute. But of course, to her, everything he does is cute. She smiled weakly as a blush appeared on her face. She got the familiar feeling of nervousness in the pit of her stomach. No matter how much of a so called "freeloader" she was, deep down inside, she's just a normal teenage girl who secretly fangirled everytime he said her name. She always acted more superior in the relationship, but only because of his fear. That just seemed to be the habit now, but she can't help squealing inside whenever he compliments her or does something nice. She has this one "scenario" that she has always dreamed of. It was of him, pinning her down against a wall or a bed. She doesn't mind acting superior, but she knew she would love it if he took control. She knew that it wasn't going to happen, well at least not anytime soon, but she knew it wouldn't hurt to daydream. She caught herself doing that often now, just gazing out a window and thinking about him. She looked down at his closed eyes and at his blank expression. She placed a hand over her heart and felt it's crazy speed. A big grin came across her face and she began to laugh out loud. She thought about how lucky she was. Of course, she wasn't actually lucky, with her illness, but the thought of him with her makes her think that she's the luckiest girl in the world. Her hand trickled down his black locks, and she started to play with his hair similar to when he did it at the airport. She then thought about all of the things that happened that day. She thought about the morning, the goodbye's at the airport, and the conversations on the plane. She then remembered what she did in the car. She shut her eyes and clenched her teeth. She hated crying, and just showing her emotions in general. But during that few couple of seconds when she was in his arms, she felt comfortered. She felt protected, and she was in the arms of someone who she could always trust. She then thought about how he told her to save it for later. She groaned at the thought of more tears, but she knew it was needed. She felt as if she had been holding in her tears for the last month. Looking up at the painting one more time, she realized that she wasn't even close to finding all the different meanings in her one work of art.

Ryuunosuke woke up in a bed. He instantly sat up and shot his attention to the woman at the corner. Her head was in her arms, which were placed on the bed, and she was kneeling on the floor. He saw her eyes flutter open, and she got out of her resting position. A smile appeared on her face.

"Glad you woke up. "

"... Um.. Did I pass out? "

" Yeah. "

" Oh.. um... sorry.. "

He scratched the back of his head, not really knowing what to say.

" There's no need to apologize. I just got to excited and went to-"

"No, really, I'm... I'm kinda trying to get over my fear... "

She giggled lightly while a small blush rose and a slight smile grew. He blushed at her and looked away.

" Ok, we'll continue this later, you can unpack and stuff, my room is right across from here, call me if you need me!"

She winked and walked away. He thought it was strange that she left so suddenly, because if he knew her at all, that woman could talk for hours. He shrugged it off, knowing that she probably had to lay down and rest from this exhausting day. He placed his hand on his racing heart and felt the hotness of his face. He sighed, ignoring the thought once again. The teenage boy unpacked and set up a small computer area. He had to catch up on a lot of work, because he really hasn't worked for a week now, and has already been fired from 2 jobs.

As soon as she stood up, she instantly felt a wave of dizziness. She hurried out of Ryuunosuke's room, knowing that this was bad. She started seeing doubles and hearing a ring in her ears. Her skin began to feel clammy and she started to tremble. She shakingly turned the doorknob and stepped into her bedroom. She held her arm to try and stop shakng, but she realized her arm was numb. She stumbled to walk to her bed. She was close, but then felt something under her feet. The next thing she knew was that she was falling. All she could see was the edge of her desk coming closer and closer. There was a thud and she felt a terrible pain in her head. Still conscious, she opened her eyes to find herself to be sprawled on the floor. She got up on her hands and knees. She then saw a drop of blood fall onto the floor. Her eyes widened at the sight of her own blood. She gasped as her vision faded to black.

Ryuunosuke was an hour into his work, when he first recognized the rare and suspicious silence. He didn't think much of it until about ten more minutes passed and he still didn't hear a thing. Curious, he walked out of the room. He looked up and down the hallway and saw nothing. He then glanced at the door that was connected to Rita's room. Nervous as hell, he turned the door knob slowly. He pushed the door opened and horror struck his face. His heart stopped at the sight of Rita, collapsed on the floor, with a puddle of blood around her. His eyes widened and he stumbled back. He was never good with blood. He started shaking from fear, and tears started to escape his eyes. His legs buckled and he fell to his knees. He breathed heavily. His mind unknowingly went into a dark place. Currently, this place was quite common to the boy, because he has been battling a lot of things. It told him to run away, to give up on her for the sake of his sanity. This woman... she just never got a break. One after another... it was depressing to think that this was just her reality. Is he really capable of living with this? Is it really worth it...? He looked at her helpless body on the ground. Someone needs to be there for her... he can't just leave her. He thought about all of the good times they had, and then all of the bad times. Images appeared in his mind. Her smile, her laugh, her beautiful eyes, her hair glowing in the light. He felt the beating of his heart without his hands even touching his chest. He escaped the dark place and ran to her. He kneeled on the floor and pushed her onto his lap. Her eyes were closed, but he wasn't looking at that. He was looking at the gash on her forehead. It made Ryuunosuke a lot more scared. He ran to the bathroom and searched for a first aid kit. Finally, he found one with a gauge and wrap. He first got a wet cloth and washed it, then placed the gauge and wrapped her head. When he was done, he was still holding her closely. Right now, he was deathly afraid to let go.

"RIITA!"

He screamed loudly, with tears trickling down his face.

Within a half hour, her eyes fluttered open. She saw Ryuunosuke's face, with tears in the corner of his eyes. She felt the warmth of his embracement. She felt her head throb. She slowly remembered what happened.

"I.. I just hit my head of the edge of the desk... then passed out from the sight of my own blood..."

He didn't say a word. He turned her body so it faced him and hugged her tightly. His hand wrinkled the back of her shirt, and his tears fell to her shoulder.

"R-Ryuunosuke.. I..I-"

"Shh... "

This hurt more than the wound on her forehead. The pain she makes him endure always does more than kill her. She can't stand it anymore. She loves him too much to keep seeing him suffer because of her. But she knew she would be just a miserable without him.

" Rita... "

He held her even tighter.

" Ryuunosuke... I can't stand this...I feel so guilty..."

He slightly released her and wiped his eyes. He looked deeply into her eyes.

"Of course I don't want you to feel guilty, but I know I don't have any control over that. The only thing we can do is be there for each other. I know need you just as much as you need me, so as long as we have each other.. we'll be.. somewhat okay."

There was only a silence.

"R-Rita?"

She said nothing as she held his shirt between her fingers and pressed her forehead against his shoulder. She clenched her teeth and cried out.

"It's just not fair! What did we do to deserve this?! We never even get a break.. "

She bawled in his embrace mentioned. As she got more upset, she abruptly jumped out of his arms and leaned her elbows and upper arm against the wall. She slammed her hand against the wall, letting her anger take over. She breathed heavily and looked at ground. A depressing look came across her face and she banged against the wall more. Ryuunosuke watched her and gulped as he saw the river of tears falling to the ground. She started whispering some horrid things to herself, as her mind traveled to her familiar dark place.

"I'm such a pitiful bitch.."

"I should just give up, everything obviously wants me to. "

" My life is worthless, I can't do anything. "

He felt like his body was being ripped apart with every line she said. He knew, underneath whatever is controlling her now, she was desperately trying to stop and to be quiet, so he wouldn't hear what she was saying.

" All I ever do is bring pain to everybody"

" They all probably hate me"

"Why am I still living? "

"I should just die already."

That's when Ryuunosuke broke.

"RITA!"

He grabbed her shoulder and whipped her around to face him. Her face looked emotionless, with her dim eyes staring at nothing and her mouth slightly open, as if she was in a trance. The only thing that showed some emotion was the stream of tears pouring out of her dead eyes and down her cheeks. He waved a hand in front of her face. Nothing. Her eyes didn't move, it was as if she didn't even know he was there. He grabbed the back of her head, and kissed her. She didn't kiss back, her lips didn't move at all. Her expression didn't change. The stream of tears just grew heavier. He stared as he suddenly saw her eyes close. She let her knees give in, and she fell towards him. He caught her and put her head in his shoulder, feeling some life getting back in her. She struggled to lift her shaking arms, but she managed to hold on to his shirt. She quietly sobbed in his shoulder for the next hour. It was late, so Ryuunosuke picked her up and took her to the bed. Laying down, she tightened her grip on him, letting him know she didn't want to be alone. She let her head dig into his chest. She felt one of his arms wrap around her. With that, she soon fell asleep, but he noticed that her tears never stopped.

Me: Aghhhh. Enough with the depressing stuff, the next chapter will be happy. I might need some help for cute filler moments, so leave some suggestions.

Shiina: ... Plan C?

Me: NO! Not yet at leaat...

Everyone: WHAT!

Me: Just kidding...

Kanda: Are you lying?

Me: Hm... we'll just have to see, now won't we?

Misaki: No hurting Rittan! (squeezes Rita)

Me: Um... Misaki-senpai.. that's basically what this story is all about...

Misaki : Blaaaahhhhhh

Me: Ending the chapter here! See ya next time!


	17. Your Happiness Is My Happiness

Rita sat straight up in her bed. She had a vague memory of the events that tool place before she fell asleep. All she remembered was Ryuunosuke. She looked at the spot where Ryuunosuke usually slept next to her, but there was nothing but wrinkled sheets. Confused, she got up and checked the room next to her. She peered into the room, with a strange feeling in her stomach.

"Ryuunosuke...?"

No answer. She looked in every room upstairs. He was nowhere to be found. Panicking, she looked in the kitchen. There on the table was a note. She picked it up and read it frantically.

"Dear Former Freeloader,

I'm returning to Japan . I'm sorry, I just can't watch you suffer anymore. If I stayed by your side, both of us will just be suffering. For the sake of my sanity, and possibly yours, please.. let me go. The more we fall in love the more we would just get hurt. I think we both know that. But please, don't do anything crazy. You do deserve to live your life. You helped me through a lot, and I'm grateful. I hope I made some impact on you, and I'm sorry it has to end like this. I'm sorry I couldn't be stronger, but I hope you understand. Ryuunosuke"

She saw her tears drip on the paper. Each word she read was another stab in the heart. She let the paper fall to the floor and she collapsed on her knees. Her body tensed up and she squeezed her hands into fists.

" RYUUNOSUKE! "

Her heart was shattered. Her hands went to her face and she sobbed her heart out.

" RYUUNOSUKE, I CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT YOU! YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND.. PLEASE...Please..come back to me... "

" Ryuunosuke... Ryuunosuke... how.. why.. I.. I need you... "

" Th-This is all my fault... My body is ruining my life...and I can't do anything about it."

She burst out in tears and screamed to herself.

"DAMMIT! FUCK! RYUUNOSUKE! FUCK! Ryuunosuke..but.. fuck.. I love you...how..how could you leave me.. dammit, don't you know that I'll just be worse.. don't you care...how am I supposed to just let you go.. I love you.. You were the best thing in my life.. now you're gone.. You were the reason I kept living through all the pain... Ryuunosuke... you were my everything.. I.. I really have nothing else to live for. "

Her sobs were louder than her words, so she couldn't continue. She glanced at the knife set on the counter. She looked at the floor but knew that there wasn't even a reason to be against it. She just isn't able to live with knowing that she emotionally ruined Ryuunosuke. She made him go through so much.. But without him, she has nothing to fight for. Without him, she was nothing. Without him, she might as well die. This way would be less painful. She picked up the biggest knife and almost smiled. She was sure one day her illness would kill her, but she never imagined she would go down like this. However, she knew this was the best way.

"I'm sorry, Ryuunosuke... Bye.. "

She quickly moved to blade toward her broken heart. And that was it.

"AHHHHH" Rita woke up screaming. She shot up, with every part of her body shaking and the bed was soaked from her sweat. She looked down at her body and the room she was in. She raised her shaking hands and made a fist.

"I.. I'm alive? "

She sighed in relief, because it was just a nightmare. She held her face, and noticed her sweat was mixed with her tears.

" R-Rita? W-What's wrong.. "

The startled boy sat up. She shot a glance at the boy next to her.

" Ryuunosuke!"

She threw herself at him and squeezed the life out of him."

" Um... Freeloader?"

"I.. I had a nightmare... "

"Oh.. "

He subconsciously put his arms around her, comforting her.

"Do you.. uh.. want to talk about it? "

She tensed up, squeezed him tighter, and swallowed the lump in her throat.

" I woke up in the dream, and you were gone. You went back to Japan, and said you thought it would be best if we didn't see each other anymore... you couldn't handle seeing me suffer...Then I..I got a knife and.. I killed my- "

Ryuunosuke interrupted her by hugging her as tightly as she was. There was a long silence while she cried in his shoulder. Ryuunosuke searched for the right words to say.

"Rita, it was a dream for a reason, because I will never, ever leave you. "

"Ryuunosuke..."

"I promise, no matter what. "

" How... How can I know for sure...I can't live with even the thought... "

Without a thought, he interrupted her by backed out of the hug and lifting her chin. He stared into her tear-filled eyes. He closed his eyes and placed his lips against hers. The moonlight came through the window and shined down on them, making it a beautiful sight. When he moved his lips away, he immediately looked at the ground from embarrassment. But curious, he shot a glance up at Rita. Her messy hair was glimmering in the moonlight and was softly blowing from the night breeze. A perfect smile was spread across her face, a deep blush was implanted on her cheeks, while her eyes were closed, and a thin line of tears streamed down her face. He let his mouth fall, and got lost in her beauty. His eyes widened at the amazing sight. His face somehow managed to get even redder. He took his shaking arm and wiped her tears. His heart was going wild. She opened her big blue eyes. Ryuunosuke immediately got lost in them. She was giggling as she gently took his hand and placed it over the area of her heart. His eyes widened and his mouth opened even more as he felt another heart beating even faster than his. They looked deeply into each other's eyes. While still locking eyes, she wrapped her hands around his neck and brought him so close that their foreheads were touching and leaning against each other.

She whispered quietly but they were so close, he could hear her perfectly.

"Ryuunosuke, thank you so much.. you always make me feel so much better. I know it's hard for you to do all this.. but I really don't know what I'd do without you.."

He noticed her stream of tears getting thicker as they rolled from her face to his. Her voice was starting to get shaky.

She swallowed the lump in her throat and continued, "Ryuunosuke... I.. I love you so so much..."

Her sobs stopped her from speaking as she shut her eyes and clenched her teeth. She lowered her head in shame of letting more tears fall.

He said nothing once again. He knew that she was crying harder, but a see of the heavy stream falling below them. But they might of been his own, he couldn't tell.

He placed his arms around her waist and pulled her closer, allowing her to cry on his shoulder. One of his hands subconsciously went to the back of her head, pulling her closer to him than he planned. He laughed in his mind at the one part of his mind telling him to stop. Like hell he'd stop this. He smiled at his progress in getting over his gynophobia. She really needed him in moments like this, and in hell would he ever let his gynophobia take over in situations like this. She sobbed quietly in his shoulder. Soon enough, she fell asleep in his arms. He turned her around, and laid down. He smiled more as positioned them into, one of the worst, the spooning position. He laughed as he thought about how much he was going to yell at himself in the morning. He pulled her closer, and laid a hand on her slim waist. His hand moved on its own as it slid under her shirt and slipped into the perfect curves of her stomach. He felt her smooth skin and bombs went off in his mind. He shoved those thoughts out of his head and relaxed his hand. He moved his body closer to hers so every part of their bodies were touching. He figured he was being so bold because she was asleep, or he was just too tired to care. After a few minutes of being in that position, he was about to drift to sleep when he heard the quiet giggles of the girl.

"F-F-F-Freeloader! "

Her giggles got louder and she soon broke out into a loud laugh. He then shot a glance of his hand, which has moved up A LOT without him even know. He quickly took his hand away, which caused Rita's shirt to fly up, making Ryuunosuke almost fall off the bed. Rita was bursting with laughter as Ryuunosuke's face was as red as his favorite food. She sat up, and her shirt fell back down. She pulled Ryuunosuke by the arm to be closer to her.

"See, no matter how gynophobic you are, you're still a man!"

She laughed even more as he glared away. She was totally right. She grabbed one of his arms and rested her head on it, like it was before. This caused Ryuunosuke to fall back into position. Screw it, he thought to himself. He slipped his hand under her shirt again, just wanting to hear her giggle more. He felt her jump a little, but she did as he wanted and cracked up again, causing the boy to smile and blush. She fell asleep instantly. Before sleeping himself, he looked over at her face once more. He saw the biggest smile and a deep blush on her face. That smile was priceless to him. And with that, he went to sleep with a priceless smile of his own.

Me: Oopssss

Kanda: What the hell is this! You said it'd be a happy chapter! You tricked us!

Me: hehehe...

Ryuunosuke: Kanda's overreacting, not all of it was sad.

Me: YESSS RYUUNOSUKE ! I LOVE YOU RYUUNOSUKE! PLEASE BE MINE!

Rita: Um.. hey.. Erica-chan.. remember me? The girl in your fanfiction.. you know.. the one that's in love with Ryuunosuke...

Me: Oh yeah sorry bout that.

Jin: Wow, since when did gynophobic's become so popular.. how many is that now.. 3?

Me: Jin! You just made a "Meet Your Maker" reference! Omg everyone, go read that story right now! It's by SuperMikoFromTheFuture and she is soooo amazing! Just go read all her stories.

Nanami: So...Ryuunosuke, who do you choose?

Ryuunosuke: Ch-choose?! (blushes, staggers back, runs into Rita, both fall on the floor)

Ryuunosuke: OH MY GOD ERICA WHY ARE WE ALWAYS ON THE FLOOR!

Me: Hehehe...

Rita: (pulls his tie and kisses him)

Nanami: Well, that's decided.

Ryuunosuke: MMMMMPH!

Me: Haha, nope, you guys can stay like that for a while.

\- 5 minutes later-

Ryuunosuke: MMPPHHH! (finally Erica allows him to breathe..)

(Rita and Ryuunosuke both breathe heavily)

Me: Hehe... Hehehe... Hehe.. Where's Misaki-senpai... she would love this right now...

Jin: Uh.. she's.. uh...

Me: Hmmmm? Oooh Jin is hiding something...?

Jin: ...

Me: LOL, I'll leave the rest to your imaginations! BAIIIII


	18. With You

The next few days were, surprisingly, normal. Rita was back to being her "normal" indecent self. The kind of girl that scared Ryuunosuke half to death, with him returning to his "normal" gynophobic self. Rita loved it that way, and somewhere, deep inside, Ryuunosuke knew he did to, even if he didn't show it most of the time. However, he could sometimes feel his gynophobia slowly slipping away, and he was scared for the day when it would be completely gone. How is he supposed to react when Rita did those "indecent" things? He thought about this long and hard, until finally deciding that there was no way to answer that question until the time comes. With that question pushed aside and their lives going back to somewhat normal, Ryuunosuke decided he should start focusing more on his work. But, he found it soon to be impossible, when one morning, he found the big open space where his entire computer set up used to be.

\- That day -

Ryuunosuke opened his dreary eyes and immediately noticed the open area in the room. He then noticed the blonde sleeping next to him, who was supposed to be in her bed. This would happen every night. He would tell her to sleep in her own bed, but every morning, without fail, he woke up with the woman snuggled against him. And every morning he would get annoyed for a second, but simply shrugged it off, knowing that there was really nothing he could do. This morning, however, he didn't get annoyed, but more worried of where his precious electronics were. He shook the British girl next to him, and she got up immediately. She turned around, and looked at him, already with an "indecent" look planted on her face. He only glared at her, then looked at the empty space. She looked in the direction he was looking and laughed.

"Oh yeah, I moved them in the middle of the night. "

" Wait, you're saying you snuck into this room, unhooked all of my things, and put it all back together... correctly!? "

" Mhm, you know.. I'm actually pretty good with computers.. "

Her fingers brushed against his chest. He jumped out of the bed, knowing he was blushing a lot more than neccessary. She giggled as he mumbled some things to himself and walked out the door. He checked every room except one, her art room. He sighed, figuring out her plan and why she did this. He walked in the room, and noticed the cleared out space which was now being occupied with his things. Everything was completely organized and set up correctly.

"How the hell did she do this? "

He knew it was actually pretty complicated to do all of this, and the fact that she did this silently and in the middle of the night was quite impressive. He felt his face get hot as he thought about her surprising hidden skill. Sure, the "R & R" heart stickers on his desk weren't exactly necessary, but after a while, he let it slip, noticing the large dish of tomatoes on a table close by. He smiled and picked one up and chomped on it. A few minutes later, Rita walked into the room.

"You're not the easiest to impress, but I think I got you. "

"Yes, um.. y-you actually did."

A light blush and a smirk spread across her face. She giggled an walked up behind him, snatching the half-eaten tomato out of his hand. She took a bit out of it. He spun around and gave her a death stare, but it didn't really work with the blush on his face. After chewing and swallowing the chunk of tomato, she placed it back in his hand.

"Indirect kiss?"

Not wanting to waste the delicious tomato, he looked in her eyes and took another bite. She stared at him, with her heart beating out of her chest.

"But who needs an indirect kiss when you can have a real one?"

She quickly kissed his soft lips. When she backed away, she winked and turned to her area of the room. Ryuunosuke gulped, and was speechless as he watched her tie on a smock. Damn that woman, surprising him again. He wiped around and sat back in his chair, with his face as red as the tomato he was holding. Forgetting to turn his volume down, Maid-chan quickly appeared on the screen.

"Ryuunosuke-sama! It's been awhile, where in the world have you- "

Her eyes gazed around painting-covered room.

" W-Where are you?! "

She gasped as the familiar blonde came into view.

" What is SHE doing here! "

Ryuunosuke spun around and looked at the woman across the room, waving at the screen, with a paintbrush between her fingers.

"This is my art room, we are at my house, in England!"

Maid-chan gasped then screamed. Ryuunosuke held a finger to his mouth.

"Shhh. It's a long story."

The AI glared at him but took the hint, and Ryuunosuke simply sighed and began working on his many projects. Behind him, Rita prepared her tools for her next painting. She thought hardly on what her next work should be. She soon decided to do a portrait... of him. She giggled at her brilliant idea. An idea that involved staring at him all day with no other reason than simply "It's my job."

"Hey Ryuunosuke, I'm going to paint you, so don't mind me staring at you... "

"Ok course I'd mind you star- W-Wait! Y-You're painting a portrait...of me!?"

He spun around and looked at the woman with an "Are you crazy?" look on his face.

"Yeah, you're the only thing I've been thinking of recently... so why not? "

With a blush appearing once again, he sighed and turned back around, knowing that if he just let her work she'll actually be capable of sharing a room with. She already had a complete mental image of him in her head, but constantly caught herself staring at him.

" Hey, Ryuunosuke, turn around."

"Hey, Ryuunosuke, lift your chin."

"Hey, Ryuunosuke, stick your arm out. "

" Hey, Ryuunosuke, can you stand up? "

Questions like this went on for the next couple of hours. He undeniably did as she commanded. He knew if he let her do whatever she wanted, she wouldn't be much of a bother to him. Or at least that's what he thought..

" Hey, Dragon. "

He spun his chair around once more, and perked his eyebrow in confusion of her words.

" Can you take your shirt off... "

" W-What! No!"

"But I need an outline of your body! Your shirt is too baggy! And it's not like I haven't seen you shirtless before... "

His face got even redder, remembering those strange events. He sighed, knowing there was no way out of it. He pulled off his shirt and placed it next to him.

"Hottie."

"Shut up!", he yelled, turning back towards his computer. She giggled at his shyness. She put her paintbrush down and rushed to his part of the room. She got a closer look at the boy, and held a finger to her chin, thinking intensely. He gave her a death stare, but once again, it didn't have a full effect with such a blush on his face. She got even closer, and he shifted a bit, but managed to look as if he was busy with his work. She placed a hand under his chin, and turned his face torwards her. He attempted to keep his attention on the screen, but with the warmth of her hand on his face, it was impossible. They quickly met eyes. This wasn't like usual, when they were gazing into each other's eyes. She looked at him studiously and with deep thought. She looked at his cheekbones and other facial features. She got inches away from his face, enough to hear him gulp. She studied him a bit more, until he finally gave in and escaped her grasp.

"Aghhhh! I can't take it anymore, you're way to close to me!"

"That's fine, I got all the information I need. ", she said professionally.

She was walking back over but then something stopped her.

" Oh, yeah, Ryuunosuke, can you take your pants-"

He immediately cut her off and yelled, "N-NO!"

She giggled, "I knew you'd say that."

"I-I suppose it's quite obvious... "

She nodded her head while giggling and walked back. The time went on, but Ryuunosuke was never really concentrating on his work, with the fear of that woman in the same room with him. Although, he wasn't really sure if he could call it fear when he actually caught himself looking at her multiple times. A part of him was slightly interested in watching the professional painter do her job. And to be quite honest, he thought she looked good with her hair tied back and with a messy smock on. Lost in thought and staring at the woman once again, he saw a familiar pair of eyes meet his. The previous blush on his face darkened. A dark blush appeared on her face as well. Both speechless, they stared deep into each other's eyes, until Rita finally spoke.

"Uh... R-Ryuunosuke... "

He gulped, "W-What..."

"How long were you looking at me... "

The truth escaped his mouth, "Um-uh...I-I don't know.."

She felt her heart skip beats and her blush grow even darker.

"O-Okay..."

She turned back around. Ryuunosuke was confused at her words. Normally she'd giggle and say something like, "Sorry that my beauty distracted you." But this time.. she seemed just as nervous as he was. He kept replaying that scene in his mind, while unknowingly kept glancing back at the artist.

A few workless hours later, Ryuunosuke heard Rita say, "Done!"

He slowly turned around and looked at the now painted canvas. He was, once again, caught starstruck at her work. The picture was a portrait of him, that went down to his knees. There was no face, and his body faded with the background, but there was a thin black line that went all around his body, clearly marking his outline. The background was a light blue color, and the picture had him in a purple shirt with dark blue pants. His long black hair draped behind him, but that as well faded with the background.

"If you're wondering what's the meaning behind the face is, it's because of you're urge to remain emotionless in all situations."

"How about the outline and fading? "

" The outline is proving your clear distinction from the rest of society, so basically it's saying you're different. The fading.. well I did it that way because you've been affected by society or the "outside world"..."

He gulped at her astonishing reasoning. She can transfer her thoughts to paintings so easily. It was purely incredible. She heard him gasp, and that instant made her curious.

"Do you like it?"

" Um.. it's g-good... "

His blush made it obvious that he thought it was more than just "good". She giggled and started washing her paint brushes and removing her smock. He watched her as she stretched her arms and yawned. She then noticed his stare, blushed, and looked at him "innocently ".

"Ryuunosuke.. You're staring at me again... "

He felt his face get red as he spun back in his chair.

"S-sorry... "

He felt her hands on his shoulders.

" Do you really think I mind...? ", she whispered into his ear. She giggled and quickly put her hands on his burning cheeks. He turned his face and kissed him hard. When she broke, she was sure he'd be knocked out, but she opened her eyes to two big eyes staring back at her. Ryuunosuke really wanted to faint, just to get out of this awkwardness, but somehow, he just couldn't do it. She giggled and walked across the room.

Yeah, there was no way he'd be getting any work done in this room.


	19. The Definition of A Great Birthday

The time went on, and in Rita's eyes, it was the best time of her life. She noticed Ryuunosuke slowly getting over his gynophobia. The only thing that bugged her was, that sometimes he faked being afraid of her. Rita knew this because she could read him like a book. But, however, she was more than happy when she saw him doing things he normally would never even think of. Like leaving his bedroom door unlocked every night. And when he stares at her. She always caught herself blushing way more than he did in those situations, but only because he never knew she noticed. It's funny, everyone thinks that she's not the type to blush over stuff like that, but she does. And her heart beats out of her chest. And she gets super self-conscious. And she feels her face getting hot. And she got this weird feeling in her stomach. Just by a certain two eyes being placed on her. She's been to art competitions and banquets where there were 1000 eyes on her, but that's nothing compared to the way Ryuunosuke made her feel. She began randomly giggling whenever she thought about him, which was so often, he started doubting her sanity.

So that's how things been going for the last week or so. Well, until the days started getting colder and shorter. Yes, the season of winter was right around the corner. Which also meant, her birthday.

"So, Ryuunosuke, are you ready for tomorrow? "

Her father asked him this question in a serious voice. In all honest, he could never be ready, but he wasn't planning on admitting that.

" Yes, sir, tomorrow morning you will bring her down here, and I'll be here to greet her?"

"Yes, that's correct, and the plane will be taking off 2 days from tomorrow."

"Ok. "

He left the room and continued on with his day.

-Next day-

"How the hell did you get into my room!?"

"I picked the lock."

"I have to stop doubting your abilities... "

" Yeah", she said giggling and giving a wink while he glared at her and sighed.

The only reason he locked the door that night was to prepare for the surprise. While thinking of a plan, he stared at her "wake-up" look. She had her legs spread out on the bed, and was holding herself up by her extended arm. Her hair was frizzy and going in every direction. Her face was clear of makeup and her eyes looked sleepy. He noticed that she always woke up with a blush. She yawned and then noticed his black eyes staring right at her.

"Ryuunosuke... I'm not a computer, there's no need for you to stare at me all day... ", she said giggling.

His face instantly went red.

"... but I wouldn't mind if you did a little work on me... "

Like she always did, she trailed her finger up his chest seductively.

"Oi.. didn't I tell you to stop doing that... I swear you're going to be the death of me.. "

He grabbed her hand and put it back in her lap. Her blush deepened as he touched her hand.

Giggling, she said, " I'm okay with that.. "

She changed the superiority of their hands, pulled him in, and locked lips. Her heart raced like crazy. After that, Ryuunosuke got up and attempted to push the "distraction" out of the room, when he felt something heavy in his hair. He pulled his hair in front of him. He shrieked when he noticed the long, black braid that his precious hair was in. A blush appeared on his face, realizing that she must've done this.

"You look so cute!", she said quietly but cheerfully. She had such a sweet-looking smile on her face and a deep blush covering her cheeks. How could he be mad at this? He faked an annoyed look, but her expression didn't change.

"W-Why are you so flustered?"

"Hm?... " She felt her face, and must have realized how warm it was, because her blush got even darker.

She was giggling while she said, "You're just too handsome"

This made his face turn red as well. He grabbed his hair again and sighed.

"Well, fine, it'll stay. But just for today! "

"Yay!"

Without even having to ask her, she happily got out of bed and skipped her way out of his room. He closed the door with a weird smile he couldn't wipe off his face. He's usually a pro at keeping a straight face, so this was rare. He let it remain there, while he picked out some clothes for the day. Deciding to look a little nicer than usual, he chose a long-sleeved plain red shirt, with black pants. He looked in the mirror. Sure, he looked different, but he looked quite nice. Maybe he even like the braid, but of course, he was never going to admit it. With such a surprising appearance, he pulled out some cologne, which he rarely ever used, and sprayed an amount on himself. Once more, he looked in the mirror. He almost laughed at how ridiculous he was being. Who was he trying to impress? Knowing the answer to that, he shuttered. He scratched the back of his neck and made an unsatisfied face. But he immediately shrugged off his doubt and rushed out the door. He headed downstairs, like her father directed him to. Ryuunosuke saw his head appear from behind the door. The older man motioned his hand towards him. As soon as the blonde man got a complete look at him, a smile appeared on his face.

"Wow, Rita will be happy to see this.."

Ryuunosuke's face instantly got red as he stood their awkwardly, scratching the back of his head.

"Okay, you're going to stay here, and I'm going to go get her. "

Ryuunosuke nodded his head in agreement. He was nervous, but had no idea why. In a few minutes he heard footsteps coming down the stairs. Ryuunosuke walked out, to find Rita in a total state of awe. He watched a deep blush rise upon her face. Ryuunosuke was confused, because she normally never blushes, or at least that's what he assumed. He has never seen her blush this hard though. Why is something as little as his appearance affecting her so much? Why were her eyes stuck on him? Why wasn't her expression even close to changing?

"Um.. F-..Rita?"

"Uh..uh.. um... s-sorry.. Ryuunosuke you.. you look good.. "

" You're stuttering. You never stutter. "

" Uh... y-yeah... you look really really good.."

He scratched the back of his neck awkwardly again. Why was she acting so..? He couldn't think of the word. He looked at her again. She was also acting awkward. That's strange. She's never awkward. That blush on her face was still there, and it seemed as if it didn't plan on leaving. She was now looking around the room, desperately trying not to make eye contact with him. Why?

"Hey. Rita. "

Still without looking at him, she said, "W-What?"

"Happy Birthday."

Ryuunosuke didn't think it was possible, but her face got even redder. He almost laughed at how silly she was acting. His heart was beating fast, and he couldn't keep his eyes off of her. Unfortunately, he was convinced he thought she was cute. He was doubting himself at first, but then he confirmed it.

"T-Thank you. "

Mr. Ainsworth soon joined the conversation.

" Rita, we have a present for you."

With her face dying down a bit, she looked confused.

" Father.. you didn't have to get me anything.. but thanks. "

He handed her the medium sized box. She unwrapped it and a confused look came across her face. She picked up the two plane tickets.

A smile grew as she exicted said, "You're letting me go back to Japan!? "

" No, I'm not. "

Her smile faded and her face got even more confused.

" I'm letting you move there."

Her mouth opened wide in surprise. Her eyes grew and tears of joy leaked from her eyes. She hugged her father and whispered, "Holy crap! Thank you.. thank you so much.. "

" You're welcome, Rita"

After a while of seeing this touching family moment, Ryuunosuke stepped in.

"And I already contacted Chihiro-sensei, there is a room ready for you. And you are also accepted into school. "

She broke her father's hug and changed her attention to Ryuunosuke. She looked into his eyes with her teary eyes and a smile came across her face. She hugged him tightly.

" Words cannot explain how thankful I am.. ", she whispered in his ears, with her voice being shaky.

" Yeah, I know", he whispered back. He smiled and patted her head. She cried tears of joys softly in his embracement. Yeah, it was beautiful. No more worrying about traveling back and forth and she wouldn't ever have to be without him again. But this also came with many more worries. Such as, now, Ryuunosuke is the only one that can care for Rita when she is sick, he has to take full responsibility. There are many depressing factors to that, but Ryuunosuke is alright with dealing with it.

"I love you, Ryuunosuke. ", she whispered.

Ryuunosuke's heart raced and his face turned bright red. He wanted to say something, but he had no idea what. Before he had a chance to think anymore, she leaned back from the hug and kissed him softly on the lips. Ryuunosuke was almost shaking from the crazy fast beating of his heart. When she pulled away, Ryuunosuke was left with quite a sight. Her hair was glowing, her cheeks were red, her smile was beautiful, and he could feel her heart beating rapidly against his chest. Just her appearance made him feel like fainting.

As for Rita, she had a pretty nice view to. She couldn't even explain how much that braid and that shirt made her heart race. Just looking at him made her shake. All she could do was stand there, in his arms, with an unstoppable smile, because she lost the ability to ever move again. It's absolutely crazy how crazy she is for him.

Me: OH MY LORD, I'm so sorry this chapter took like two weeks. School started for me, and I've been reallyyyy busy. But.. on a good note... we are coming close to the big scene, and after that the story will end! And if you have an idea of what you have a plot in mind that you would like me to write for the next story, I'd be more than happy to hear it!


	20. What's Worse, The Past or the Future?

Ryuunosuke looked out the window of the airplane. He sighed in boredom as he pulled out his phone, but desperately avoided all of the texts and emails from his jobs. Without any luck of avoiding them, he put his phone away and sighed once again. He looked to his right too see the blonde woman sitting next to him. She was fast asleep, with her head being placed on his shoulder. Even though he was shaking in terror, he didn't move because he didn't want to wake her up. But before he knew it, the loud speaker hurt his ears as it said the destination was near. Taking a spine-tingling glare at Rita, he gulped and tried shrugging his shoulder. Not wanting to be tricked again, he studied her face closely, looking for any signs of movement. He thought he saw her eye twitch, but he wasn't sure, so he thought of a plan. His gynophobia was rumbling inside him, while he gently placed a trembling hand on her upper leg, slightly above the knee. He watched as her emotionless lips soon curved into a smile. A blush arose on her cheeks. Ryuunosuke sighed and took his hand away. She opened her eyes and giggled at what the boy just did.

"Well, Ryuu-no-suke, getting a little risky there, are we?"

"Shut up... But I'm actually surprised my daring plan worked. Didn't think you would break that easily. "

"Suprised? How so? "

"You just seem not the type to blush over that. But now that I think of it, you've been blushing a lot more recently.. and you've been acting weird... like weirder than usual."

His eyes darted away, and he as well began to blush.

"Mmm, yeah, see I only acted so superior before because it was the only way to get you..like I actually blush and get really nervous all the time, I just didn't start showing it until now..."

"Oh.. so were you just acting this whole time? "

" Just hiding my blushes and push away the butterflies and stuff."

"Ah, so what made you want to not hide it now? "

She had to think for a while before answering.

"We got closer and it seems as if you're loosening up with your phobia, so I have no reason to be afraid of losing you...right?"

He gulped, but nodded quickly.. There was a short silence, with both of the pair in deep thought.

Rita was obviously not thinking the same as Ryuunosuke when she said, "Hey Ryuunosuke, what if I turned into a tsundere?"

He was at the edge of cracking up at the thought of the woman acting like a tsundere.

"That would be weird, but... interesting."

"Hm.. Ok I'll keep that in mind. "

She gave a quick wink with a smirkish smile and started gathering the things around her.

By then, the flight attendant confirmed their landing and soon they were inside the airport. As soon as they made eye contact with the familiar group from Sakurasao, they were trampled with hugs and questions. Misaki, who was more crazy than usual, jumped on Ryuunosuke, making him freak out.

"DRAGON! "

" G-Get off me! "

With her limbs wrapped around his legs and torso, it was almost impossible for him to move her. She squeezed tighter and he struggled to not faint.

"DID YOU AND RITTAN DO THINGS!?"

His face went red while Rita, who was eavesdropping, giggled and winked at the extremely hyper girl.

"NO! G-Get off me! "

She removed her arms and Misaki ran over to jump on Rita. He crossed his arms and looked away, but couldn't keep himself from looking at the girls hug Rita. Then, Kanda came up and gave him a big hug.

Noticing the small tears in the corner of Kanda's eyes, he said, "Wow, Kanda, you get so emotional so easily."

He let go of the boy and wiped his eyes.

" I'm just so proud of you.. "

Ryuunosuke casually perked his eyebrows with no other expression on his face.

"You brought her back.. and she's staying here forever... "

He looked over at the British woman, who was still being smothered by the girls, and he accidently let a smile slip. He was just thinking about how different his life would be with this crazy woman always being so close to him. He knew without her, he'd still be sitting in his room for weeks, and the only conversations he would ever have would be with his AI. Looking back at that know, it seems quite boring. He made a mental note to thank Rita one day.

In an hour, they were back at Sakurasou. Ryuunosuke helped Rita carry her multiple bags to her new room, which was "coincidentally" right across the hall from him. Her eyes lit up when she saw the placement of the room and she grabbed his shoulders and quickly locked lips. They both fell to the floor and by then, Ryuunosuke was unconscious.

He woke up to a blue-eyed woman staring right back at him. It wasn't long until he felt the formation of her legs underneath his head. He managed to keep a straight face while Rita smiled and slightly blushed down on him. He huffed and sat up, now with his back facing her. He felt a hand slide up his back, and he immediately tensed up. He was about to yell when her hand began slightly pressing against his back. But this quickly released him from his tension, and she began massaging his shoulders. She moved up to around his neck area, and without any warning, she placed a soft kiss in front of his ears. While her lips were touching, she felt the tension in his neck grow, and soon fixed it with her soft, gentle hands. After this she stopped, and proclaimed her discovery.

"I got it! If I keep your muscles from getting tense, it helps your gynophobia!"

"I-I'm not sure if that's exactly right.. "

" Can I do more to test the theory?"

He was reluctant at first, but eventually gave in, noticing how excited she got.

"Um.. Fine.. b-but only for experimental reasons! "

She giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck. Her thumbs dug into the back of neck. Ryuunosuke closed his eyes and tried to relax. She went in strong, and immediately began making out with him. She held the back of his head with one hand and the other went around massaging various parts of his upper body. She moved her lips freely around his. She suddenly pushed harder and before he knew it, his back was on the ground and Rita was piling over him. She continued with one arm now holding herself up and the other still massaging the boy. Ryuunosuke laid there, almost shaking, with his arms laying at directly by his sides and his legs squished together from tension. While kissing, the girl's mind was racing with questions. The most common one, appearing once more, came into play. The question of if he loves her. She's trying to just wait for him, but she knows she can't wait forever. What happens if he never says anything? Or if they do get together, what if their relationship would only bring pain? With the tornado going on in her head, she stopped what she was doing and plopped down in his arms next to him. Confused, Ryuunosuke looked over at the girl cradled by his side. Why did he feel bad? Did he do something? Is she just messing with him again? No... it was something more. He could just by the expression on her face. Well what was he supposed to do now? If only he had more confidence... He felt so strange, and he didn't like it. He wanted to do something to cheer her up, but something was holding him back. He didn't like seeing her this way, and he especially didn't like the fact that it was because of him. This anger was building up inside him. He clenched his jaw and shut his eye tightly.

Rita almost jumped when she felt a hand fly up the back of her shirt. His hand skimmed across her soft skin, and went up to her shoulders. He began to relieve her stiff shoulders. A smile immediately formed on her face, and her cheeks turned a perfect shade of pink. She let out a few tears knowing that Ryuunosuke read her mind and built up the courage to do this. After a few minutes of being in absolute heaven, she got up and looked down at him.

She said in a soft voice, "Thank you, it means a lot."

He didn't say a word as he watched her turn around and exit through the door.

Today was the first day of school at Sumei High for Rita. When she came down the stairs, Ryuunosuke was shocked. Even though he has seen this uniform thousands of times, it seemed completely different on Rita. Why did he think that? He had no idea. He shrugged it off and headed out the door, with the group following him. While walking, the others filled Rita in on what school was like at Sakurasou. Luckily, she was in most classes with the members of Sakurasou. At the beginning of class, the teacher announced the new transfer student. As soon as she walked in, all of the boys in the class were struck in awe at the English beauty. She was placed in the very back of the room, surrounded by a group of guys that were the exact definition of trouble. Throughout the day, the swarm of boys constantly surrounded her. Ryuunosuke couldn't help but continually glance over, just to interpret her fake smile. He could tell that she hated all this attention, and she didn't want to spend any more time with the guys that were talking to her. Lunch came around, and he pretended to be in a conversation with Kanda, but he cringed everytime he heard a "compliment" come out of another guy's mouth. He was angry. No, let's correct that, he was jealous. He was jealous how guys can talk to her so openly. He was jealous that guys could easily tell her she's beautiful. He looked at her again and locked eyes with her. She got up, confusing the guys around her, and walked over to Ryuunosuke. The guys followed her, but then Ryuunosuke got up as well and he walked out of the classroom with his tomatoes. Rita followed, reading his mind. The guys stood there with confusion as they watched the beautiful woman walk to the strange gynophobic programmer.

One of the "leaders" of the little group yelled across the room, "Hey, babe, you might not wanna talk to that guy, why don't join us for a bit? "

This made them both stop dead in their tracks. Every eye in the class was centered on her. She calmly walked back to where the guy was. She had a pissed off facial expression, and she was clenching her fist.

She sighed and said directly, "I'm not your babe, so don't adresses me as that. And I would happily eat lunch with "that guy" rather than with any of you narcissistic losers."

With that said, no guys tried flirting with her ever again. During class, she was always concentrating with her studies, so she seemed to busy to be talked too. This caused her to excel in all of her classes, as soon turned out to be one of the top students in the grade. She was only friends with the members of Sakurasou, which she seemed happy about. However, guys continued to stare and comment, and girls soon grew jealous. Her skill in painting wasn't any help either, nor was the fact she came from quite a rich family. It was hard at times, and everytime it made Ryuunosuke cringe, because he knew Rita was far from being a "lucky girl".


	21. Christmas

Ryuunosuke looked out of the window in his room and watched the December snow fall to the ground. He shuttered at the fact that Christmas was right around the corner. He never really was a big fan on Christmas. It forces him to be social and such other things. But the one thing he despises most is presents. He doesn't like receiving or giving them. Every year he is given some strange presents, from maid outfits to tomato plushes, they get weirder each year. He usually just orders some stuff online, to avoid being rude on Christams. This year, however, he knew he has to actually shop for presents. Especially for Rita. Even though that indecent woman has put him through hell, she helped him so much. What she has done is actually priceless. So, what in the world was he going to get her? He had no idea. He looked in his wallet, just to get something in mind. He was shocked when he saw how much money he actually had. He hasn't been spending anything at all lately, and he always seems to be forgetting that his programming job pays well. So what was he going to do with the money? He had no idea. If he could just ask her..

As if on cue, Rita bursts through the door. She came in and sat down in HIS computer chair. She pressed some buttons and the black screen lit up.

"Um, what are you doing?"

"Saying hi to Maid-chan."

He turned back around and gazed out of the foggy window, while listening to the somewhat normal conversation between the former freeloader and his AI. He was getting more nervous by the second, knowing he would have to ask this stupid question.

Finally he gained some confidence, "Oi, Freeloader, what do you want for Christmas?"

She didn't even look at him.

"You don't have to get me anything. "

" Of course I do. Answer my question. "

She spun around in his chair and gave an obviously fake sigh. It was obvious she was holding back a smile.

"If you must be so eager, then just surprise me."

He rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. He was slightly confused by her attitude, however.

"What's up with your attitude.. oh wait.. don't tell me.. Are you playing "tsundere"...?"

She looked away for a brief second and let a small giggle loose. She wiped her head back on the screen and forced a straight face.

"You have no right to know my ambitions. "

Ryuunosuke decided to have some fun with this. She heard his footsteps coming closer and closer to her. Soon she saw the long strand of black hair fall over her shoulder. She tensed up and slowly turned her head to see the purple eyed boy inches from her face. The smile she was forcing away grew stronger and stronger, almost impossible to hide.

The hunched over guy seductively whispered in her ear, "Hey, Miss Tsundere.. might you be willing to spare some of your precious company with me, for only a single trip to the mall?"

The smile broke through, and along with it came a deep blush. She rolled back on the moving computer chair, and died of laughter.

By now, the poor boy's face was a bright red, regretting letting that slip out of his mouth in that tone of voice.

"Yes, Mr. Akasaka , I'll accompany you, but only because you asked so nicely.. "

She blushed and winked, while he stared at her, holding back his chuckle, and scratching the back of his neck.

"I'm taking for granted you would like to go Christmas shopping? "

He nodded quickly.

"Let's see if the others are free, so we could split up."

He nodded quickly once again. She couldn't help but giggle and smile at his adorable awkwardness. Her heart was beating out of her chest.

Awhile later, they were gathered at the door. Kanda and Shiina were the only one's that were free and also needed to do some Christmas shopping.

Ryuunosuke and Rita soon found out that, apparently, over the time they were in England, Kanda and Shiina started dating.

When they arrived at the shopping center, they immediately began searching stores and helping each other pick out presents for the other members of Sakurasou.

"What do you think Misaki would like? ", Rita asked.

" I'm sure she would love anything you got her" Kanda said reassuringly.

"Manga", Shiina added.

Rita nodded, and they headed into a anime store. Kanda actually knew what her favorite anime was, and he handed a plush to Ryuunosuke. The black-haired boy sighed but took the stuffed character and went to check out. Rita picked out a manga, that she knew would fit in Misaki's preferred genre. Kanda later found a stuffed animal cat that was identical to Hikari. Shiina got her some animating tools. The next person in their list was Jin.

The group was puzzled at first, having no idea what to get the older mature boy. Kanda picked out a shirt with a cool design. The others got some writing supplies for the script writer.

After gathering some more presents for Kanna, Iori, and Chihoro-sensei, the group finally split up to get presents for each other. Ryuunosuke and Kanda went shopping for the girls, while Rita and Shiina did the same for the boys.

"So.. um.. Mashiro..I actually have no idea what to get Ryuunosuke..." , Rita said nervously.

"..."

"So..umm what did you get Kanda?"

"A body pillow of myself."

Rita giggled in shock, and Shiina, to Rita's surprise, blushed.

"Aw Mashiro.. that's so cute!"

Rita smiled at the sight of the girl blushing. The same girl that hasn't ever changed her emotion for as long as Rita has known her. Her heart was warmed, because of her beat friend's happiness.

Shiina interrupted Rita's "awing" with, "So, what are you going to get dragon?"

"... I don't know... ", she replied with sadly.

Shiina returned to a straight face. Stuck in Rita's head was a million questions. What does he want? What if he doesn't like whatever she gets him? A familiar color suddenly appeared in her mind. Red. The color of the shirt he was wearing on her birthday. The day she got the best present of her life. Now, the color red is her favorite. It's the color she can't even look at without Ryuunosuke appearing in her mind.

"Has to be red... " She said under her breath. She looks at the various stores around her. She then spotted something and took off quickly.

Shiina quickly pulled out her cellphone and typed the message,

"Has to be red.."

Then, she hit send.

Ryuunosuke slumped down on a bench. He was extremely puzzled and was dreading every second of this. Everytime he tried looking at stuff, he got all flustered and it was embarrassing. He had to pull himself together and get this done with. But still, he has no idea what to get her.

"Kanda, um.. what did you get Shiina? "

Kanda choked on his chuckles and whispered something in Ryuunosuke's ear. The black haired teenager's jaw dropped, his face went red, and it looked as if he was just struck by lighting. Kanda played it off cool, with only a small blush and a cheerful expression on his face.

"Uh... um.. uhhhh.." Ryuunosuke tried speaking, but it was currently impossible. Kanda then felt his phone vibrate, and he saw the new message from his girlfriend. He knew exactly what it meant, and thought of the perfect way to do it.

"Hey, Ryuunosuke, why don't you get her a necklace?"

His blush deepened slightly, thinking if that was a good idea or not. He had a lot of money put aside, mostly because he has nothing else to do with all of the money he gets from programming. He knew he had to get her something nice, so he guess he'll just have to go with that. He sighed, and got up. With Kanda following him, he found the closest jewelry store. Staring at the inside from behind the door, Ryuunosuke doubted his decision. But he was forced to enter when Kanda ran in front of him and pulled him inside. Ryuunosuke was almost shaking, he never thought he would ever buy a gift like this. And he especially never thought he'd give it to a woman. Looking around at the jewelry, he was astonished, yet petrified, at the hundreds of different types there were. He tried to think what Rita would like, but it was hard because she never talks about that stuff. He noticed Kanda, who was at a different section of the store, starting intently into a glass case. Ryuunosuke walked over and immediately noticed a silver necklace, with some kind of metallic design at the middle, and in the center was a beautiful, shinning red ruby. Kanda saw Ryuunosuke's face heat up. The black haired boy's eye's widened and it seemed as if he was lost in thought. Kanda stepped back and smiled, knowing his job was done.

"Um..I-I think that one's good, r-r-right?" Ryuunosuke spoke, with the tone of nervousness in his voice.

"Yeah, good choice." Kanda said with an accidental laugh, while patting himself on the back. Ryuunosuke quickly purchased the necklace and hurried out the door.

~ Christmas Eve ~

"Ryuunosuke? You in here? "

He heard Rita's voice from the hallway. He heard the crack of the door and instantly tried to remove the blush plastered onto his face. He was siting in the corner of the room, on the floor, trying to think of everything he was going to say to say the next day. She walked in, and immediately spotted him.

"Something the matter, Ryuu-no-suke?"

His blush reappeared, but he answered, "N-Nothing.."

"Well anyways, I was wondering if... um.. "

She sat down on the floor next to him and sat back against the wall.

" I was wondering if you wanted to exchange presents alone.. so it's just the two of us.. "

Ryuunosuke turned his head in curiosity.

"Um..T-That's fine with m-me.."

His response put a beautiful smile on her face.

She tilted her head towards him and giggled, "Really?"

He quickly shook his head yes.

She thought it was the cutest thing in the world.

"Tonight then?"

Once again, he nodded quickly. Rita's heart was going crazy, and she felt her cheeks get warm.

"Can't you ever stop being adorable?"

Her blush made Ryuunosuke blush. He was certain that she could hear his heart racing. His stomach felt so weird.

Rita stood up and patted his head.

"Don't pass out now, you have to last until tonight, okay?"

Being unable to speak he nervously nodded his head again. She left with the biggest smile on his face. She went into her room, laid on her bed, and sighed. She couldn't even imagine what Ryuunosuke got her. She knew she shouldn't be expecting much, but she knew that anything from him would make her happy. The more she thought about this, the more nervous she got. She really couldn't wait for tonight.

Ryuunosuke sat in his room anxiously. He couldn't stop looking at the drawer that hide the crazy thing he bought for the crazy woman. Why did he do this again? The reason escaped his mind. He scruffed his hair. Should he wrap the thing? He thought about it with his face completely red. It would kind of be weird if he just handed it to her... wouldn't it? Luckily, he found some old wrapping paper and a box in his room, so he wouldn't have to go outside of his room. He wrapped the box to the best of his ability. Of course, he isn't the best at wrapping, so it wasn't exactly perfect. He stared at the box with a stern look. He looked at the clock. 8 o'clock. He remembered her words, "Later then?" When is later? He almost growled at himself. Why is he asking all these questions? Why is this such a big deal? Why is she so confusing? Sick of it all, he grabbed the somewhat wrapped box and ran out of the room. As soon as he stepped through the doorway, he stopped. "What the hell am I doing?", he said under his breath. He was so confused with everything. He turned around to go back to his room, but then he turned around again. His fingers scrunched up his hair.

" Dragon, what are you doing? "

He spun his head around quickly, to see Mashiro staring right back at him.

" Uh-um... " He couldn't seem to find any words.

" What's in the box?"

"Uh... N-Nothing... "

She titled her head sideways, not believing him.

" Um.. It's the F-Freeloader's p-present.. "

"Mm... good luck...", she said quietly.

He scratched the back of his head as she walked away swiftly.

He shook his head and approached her door. He put a hand on his cheek to make sure they weren't burning.

"Akasaka?"

Oh great. Ryuunosuke wiped his head around, to see Nanami standing in the hallway. Here we go again...

"What are you doing outside Rita's room?"

"Uh-um..N-Nothing... "

She perked her eyebrow in interest. A smirk grew across her face.

"Is that present for Rita? What did you get her?"

"I'm sure Freeloader will tell you.. ", he said with such a blush on his cheeks.

"Okay Akasaka... good luck!", she said smiling and skipping away.

Why did they wish him good luck? He was only handing her a gift, that's all. Once again, he made sure his face wasn't flustered, then he placed a hand on the knob. He stared down at it, as if it was the door to life or death. He quickly removed his hand, deciding it was better to knock first. He raised his fist and gently knocked on the door. He noticed the shaking of his arm.

"It's open", the girl from inside yelled.

He slowly opened the door and peered inside. He has actually only been in her room a small number of times. This time it was covered in red. He figured she just decorated for Christmas. He saw her sitting on her bed, doing nothing but staring at the decorations with a strange smile on her face.

"W-Were you waiting for me?"

Her attention moved to him, and her eyes widened. She processed everything, then giggled, "May-be"

She got up and stood next to him. She began playfully playing with his hair.

"W-What do you think you're doing.. "

"Thanks for coming, Dragon" She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him. One of his hands was holding the box and the other was locked awkwardly at his side.

"Um.. no problem..."

He sat down next to her. Already, Rita couldn't take her eyes off of him. Her heart was already pounding out of her chest. Ryuunosuke looked at her, curious of who was going to start. He immediately got caught in her stare and then we're now gazing deeply into each other's eyes. Even though he was looking at her eyes, he began to notice again the amazing features she had. The glistening of her long blonde hair. The perfect blueness of her eyes. The perfect smile she had. How many times did he come to this conclusion? "Too many.." , he thought in his head.

Without breaking the stare, he handed her the box. Blushing, and still showing the perfect smile, she took it out of his hands nicely. She directed her attention to the somewhat wrapped box. She unwrapped it slowly and carefully. The suspense was killing Ryuunosuke. Once she opened the box, she noticed the smaller velvet box inside. Her eyes perked in what seemed to be shock and he noticed a bit of nervousness. He noticed the lump in her throat and she was biting her lip. Attached to the small box was a little slip of paper,

"~ Merry Christmas, Rita ~"

Ryuunosuke noticed her contagious blush, her eyes widen, and her slightly shocked expression grew to a strong overwhelming look . She picked it up, so the box was in the palm of her hand. He watched as her state of awe gradually grew into overpowering emotions. She released the lip she was biting. She slowly opened it. A smile spread and tears formed in the corner of her eyes as they met the beautiful necklace. The perfect smile he knew of just grew about 10 times more perfect. The tears of joy, or what she would call love, wouldn't stop. She was absolutely speechless. A hand covered her mouth, as she looked closer, into the beautiful red stone at the center.

"R-Ryuu... "

She closed her eyes and was unsuccessful in stopping the tears. The smile was revealed when she moved her hand away. She felt like she was going to melt into a puddle. She couldn't help but get consumed by all of the emotions that hit her all at once. How much this boy changed...it unbelievable. How much he does for her, it seems unreal. How much she's in love with him, it's like a dream. With waves of love just spewing out of her, she wrapped her arms around him. Ryuunosuke was shocked at her expression and actions, as the British woman moved her arms to up around his neck. She was so close, he felt her heartbeat, which scared him. Then, to both his surprise, she unknowingly let the amount of tears streaming out of her increase greatly. She bawled her eyes out, while he tightened his embrace around her.

He put a hand on her back and patted it, and he felt his shoulder get wet. She moved back a little, enough for him to see her face. She sniffled and once again, failed in attempting to stop crying. He wasn't really focused on that though, more on the shining necklace that she was gripping in the palm of her hand. He already knew it would look incredibly good on her. In her eyes, she thought it was the most gorgeous thing on the planet. It was red. The color that reminded her of Ryuunosuke. What's more perfect than that? Also, it's the first gift he got her, their first Christmas they spent together, and most importantly, it showed the improvement Ryuunosuke has made with his gynophobia. She couldn't even imagine all he had to go through in order to do this. She took another glance at it, which she was gripping in her hand oh so tightly. She hugged him even tighter.

"I-I just love you... so much, Ryuunosuke.."

A smirk of accomplishment spread across his face. He made her happy. That's what the point of all this was, right?

He felt so happy, like he could do anything. Like his gynophobia wasn't even there. He hugged her back, and she cried on him for a few more minutes.

"Why are you the most adorable thing on the planet?"

He shrugged his shoulders and took the necklace out of hand. He crawled around so that he was facing her back. He moved her hair out of the way and put the necklace on her. She just sat there, with her hands hiding the biggest smile ever, and she was half crying and half giggling. After he was done, she spun around quickly, grabbed his face, and she met his lips. With the perfect setting of a dark room with candles around them, Rita thought she would go crazy. Her heartbeat? Faster than the speed of light. This was even before he started kissing back. There lips caressed each other's so perfectly. She placed a hand on his chest while he pulled her close by the waist. Tears ran down her face even harder now. What was happening?, she asked herself. Why was she crying so much? She had no idea, but whatever it was, she thought it was absolute heaven. She smiled while kissing, and as soon as Ryuunosuke felt the formation of her lips, he smiled too. With both of them smiling so hard, they broke the kiss. Rita looked deeply in his beautiful eyes and just giggled at all of the crazy feelings rushing through her. Never in her life did she think she'd be this in love with a person. On the other hand, Ryuunosuke was totally lost, there was no hope for him ever returning to his sanity, or at least that's what he thought. Kissing.. a woman? He's been doing this thing he never thought he'd be capable of. He never thought he'd be acting like this. He couldn't keep his eyes off of her. He couldn't keep his mind off of her. He actually felt confident while kissing. Why did he have the urge to compliment her? Why did he want to do more things? Why doesn't he want to answer these questions? He glanced down at the shining necklace, now around her neck. He was right, it looked amazing on her. He gulped and tried looking away, but he couldn't seem to get his eyes off of her.

Rita couldn't stop blushing. That reminded her of the present she had got for him. She giggled even more, knowing the irony in both of their presents. She spun around and grabbed the perfectly wrapped box on her dresser. Of course, she managed to find tomato wrapping paper. Ryuunosuke laughed when the packaging and the cute expression the British woman showed on her face. She was trying very hard not to laugh anymore, but Ryuunosuke could tell she was struggling.

"Merry Christmas, Ryuunosuke."

He smiled a response and took the gift from her hands and looked at with curiosity of what it could possibly be. As slow as he could, just to bug her, he removed the glamorous wrapping paper. He opened the box and pulled out the multiple objects. A smile appeared across his face, as soon as he realized the significance of the color. In his hands were 5 different red long sleeve shirts. He raised his eyebrow and smiled at her. His face was as red as the shirt, like it has been the whole night.

"These are kind of for my own benefit because you look reallllly hot in red."

He glanced down at her necklace again and then met her eyes. Rita knew what he wanted to say, and once again her heart skipped about 20 beats. She looked directly into his eyes, which forced him to keep his attention on her. She sneakily slid a hand up his shirt and in seconds he was shirtless. She rummaged through the pile of red shirts and she found on of her favorite. Without resistance, Ryuunosuke sat still while she dressed him. He had to look away though, but he knew Rita was gawking over his body. Shortly, he felt the fabric of the shirt surround his upper half. He turned his head to see Rita still jaw dropped with a blush on her cheeks.

"Ryuu... I knew you'd be hot.. but not this hot..."

He felt his face get more flustered them it already was.

"I swear you're going to drive me crazy.. ", she said giggling.

He then changed his direction to the box that held the shirts. He reached over and pulled out the small book that was in there.

The title read, "How to Braid"

"This book was kind of for me as well..."

Her laugh must've been contagious. Ryuunosuke handed Rita the book, and she instantly lit up.

"Wait, I can really do it?!"

"Well.. sure.. I mean uh.. y-you could do one e-everyday if y-you want.."

Her eyes widened and you could almost see the excitement bursting inside her. She climbed behind him and began stroking her fingers through his long, luscious, and beautiful black hair. In a few minutes, with the help of the newly purchased book, Rita finished a new type of braid that Ryuunosuke has never seen before. He actually liked it and nodded in approval. The butterflies in Rita's stomach grew, as she saw him be literally as sexy as possible. The emoji with the hearts as eyes was how Rita felt. But even that was an understatement. You could almost see how attracted she was, just by looking at her big eyes. Of course, that's all Ryuunosuke was staring at. He liked the look in her eyes. He liked it a lot. The glimmering blueness that surrounded her pupil. The small, but sparkling, glare in her eyes from the dim light in the room. The way her eyebrows perked with interest and exictment. The way you could see her smiling, without even looking at her smile.

Her fingers stroked his chest, and her facial expression was screaming with pleasure. He wondered what his face was saying. She wrapped her arms around him and pressed her head against his chest.

"Thank you, Ryuunosuke, for the best Christmas of my life.. "

"..."

She lifted her head up, curious of his silent reply. All she saw was a completely flustered face staring right back at her. A smile easily spread, along with a blush.

"How can you be this cute?", she whispered, while placing her forehead against his, so she was literally millimeters away from his face. Her joined arms wrapped around his neck. Ryuunosuke thought he was frightened, with their faces being oh so close. However, the feeling lingering in his body wasn't fear. It wasn't anything negative. It wasn't something he didn't like. He couldn't quite explain it. Maybe it was the setting. The coldness of the room, yet the warmth of their body heat. The dark room, only to be lit with a few candles and the shimmering glow of the big moon outside her window.

She leaned in closer and their lips softly touched each other's. The pressure grew slowly, unlike the speed of Rita's heartbeat, which wasn't anything near slow. One hand held the hair around his ear, and the other was gripping on to the back of the fabulous red shirt. Ryuunosuke was reluctant at first, but slowly moved his hands to the perfect curves of her waist. Both of their eyes were closed, and their lips were in perfect sync with each other. Rita's hand moved forward, so she held the side of his face. Her emotions were bundling up inside of her. All of the love, happiness, and sense of security were taking over. The only thing she wanted to do was kiss him. That's it. The hands on her waist made her skin tingle. The softness against her lips and the steady movements made it hard to breathe. She was in absolute heaven, but it was shockingly interrupted when there was a knock at the door.

With lips still locked, she opened her eyes to see a pair of eyes staring back at her. They slowly departed from each other and had battles of who could have more fear in their eyes.

"Rita-san? Are you in here?"

Her eyes widened even more when she recognized Nanami's voice. She knew it'd be pretty bad if she saw Ryuunosuke in her room.

"J-Just a minute... ", she barely got out.

Rita got up and pointed to the wall that is unnoticeable from the view of the door. He took the hint and moved to the corner while Rita nervously answered the door.

"H-Hi.." , she said, almost stupidly, while scratching the back of her head.

The brown haired girl smiled, "We're having a hot pot party, do you want to join us?"

"Sounds great. Um.. I-I'll be there in a few minutes.. "

"Ok, can you ask Akasaka-kun too?"

For a reason she wasn't aware of, she blushed and smiled awkwardly, ".. uh, yeah s-sure"

"Um, Rita-san, is something wrong?"

"Hm? Oh, n-nothing, see you in a bit! " She laughed strangely and closed the door on her.

She sighed and tried to wipe the blush off her face and calm down. She noticed the curious look on Ryuunosuke's face. He must've noticed her strange behavior.

" I told you, you're driving me insane", she said.

"Okk whatever you say, Miss Tsundere... "

"I'm not a tsundere! ", she said teasingly.

While about to exit the room, he whipped his head around and gave her "that" look. Rita's blush instantly grew 10 times stronger and her jaw fell to the ground. Her hands went to her face, attempting to hide the never-ending blush. She felt the hotness on her cheeks. Smiling, she wiped around in embarrassment. He laughed at her, then left the room. Rita stared at herself in the mirror.

Man, he really had her on strings.

The rest of the night was great. So was the next day, Christmas, with the exchange of all the... interesting.. gifts at Sakurasou. It turned out to be a great Christmas that will definitely go down in the history of Sakura Hall.

(And yes, Kanda loved his Mashiro waifu)

Me: 5,000 words long...

Nanami: Is that why it took a month?

Me: Yep, I know, I haven't updated in like forever.

Ryuunosuke: And this didn't even follow the story line.. what were you thinking?

Me: Yeah sorry bout that, I needed to use this chapter to show character development and stuff, ya know all that stuff that needs to happen BEFORE the big thing.

Shiina: Big thing?

Me: Mhmmmm ;)

Rita: Erica-chan, shh... you're going to spoil it..

Me: SPOIL WHAT RITA?! HOW DO YOU KNOWWWW!

Rita: Ryuunosuke's not the only one that can hack. (evil laugh) BWAAHHHAHAHAHH..

Shiina: Rita?

Nanami: you alright there Rita-san?

Rita: ... BAWWHAHAHAAAHAHWAAAAAHHHH..

Kanda: I think Rita's broken.

Ryuunosuke : I think Erica-chan's ending made her insane.

Me: True True. Can I end this now?

Jin: Don't you have anything else to say?

Me: oh yeah. Do you guys like long chapters like this? Y'all should comment and review and stuff. It's helps a lot. Thanks for all the views and reviews that I have gotten already. Bye now KYAAA?

Everyone: Kya.


	22. The Future Can Only Hold So Much

_Rita Ainsworth. The bold and the beautiful. The artist from England. The original caretaker of Shiina Mashiro. The character that wanted to take Shiina away. The jealous character. The former freeloader. A hopeless romantic. A chivalry believer. The "damsel in distress". The girl that was saved by her prince. The woman in love with a gynophobic man. "Crazy" is what some people call her. "Self-confident" is what everyone thinks of her. This is who she used to be. A small bump in the road ended this life. Now, this person is who she strives to be. Herself is now her goal. However, little did she know, there will be many more obstacles to overcome._

Rita was on her way out the door when she casually stopped to look in the mirror. She noticed something different. She didn't look right. She looked at her face more closely and noticed that her cheekbones seemed so much more visible than before. She looked down at her hands and looked at her long, narrow fingers. Confused, she took off her shirt. The reflection in the mirror stunned her.

"What.." she whispered to herself, while turning sideways and realizing how serious this thinness was.

She looked everywhere on her body. It was all thin and frail. Ribs, bones, loose skin, it was all dreadfully visible. Confused and scared, she had no idea what to do. This never happened to her before. She shrugged it off and just told herself to eat more. She managed to adjust her uniform, so nothing would be that noticeable. She stroked her hair with her fingers. Even her hair felt thinner. With such self consciousness, her mood was off all day. Everyone noticed her strange behavior, and they talked about it at lunch.

"Hey, Akasaka-kun, hasn't Rita-san been acting weird? ", Nanami asked.

"Well um...n-now that you mention it... "

The black haired boy thought back to when he was walking to school with her. Rita definitely wasn't herself. He felt the nervousness build up in his stomach.

"Yeah, she seemed different, do you know anything?", Kanda added, while eyeing the programmer.

"No...", Ryuunosuke said, with a great discomfort in his voice.

The next class came and he stared at her the entire time. Once, Rita met eyes with him, but she looked away quickly and awkwardly clenched her upper arms with her hands. He noticed the weird look in her eyes. The more he looked at her, the more worried he got.

"Oi, Freeloader, is something wrong?"

"Hm?", she looked at him somewhat calmly.

"You seem off, are you feeling okay?"

"Oh yeah, I'm fine. ", she lied.

He shrugged and began walking home.

With winter still amongst them, it was quite cold outside. Even though she had a heavy winter coat, she was shivering. Ryuunosuke, feeling uncomfortable, had to know what was happening.

"Um.. F-Freeloader, are you sure your ok?"

"Uh, yeah, just a little tired.", she said, getting anxious from everyone's worries. Frustrated, she sped up walking so that she was in front of him. Why can't everyone believe her? Why are they still suspicious? Why can't she fake it better? She was walking so fast she didn't notice how out of breath she was. She muttered curse words as the reoccurring dizziness hit her. She dealt with this countless times before, so it wasn't hard to keep walking and play it off. Well, her idea of walking normally was obviously different from Ryuunosuke's, because he noticed almost immediately. He sped up so he was close behind her. After ten minutes or so, the dizziness wore off. She was walking in a straight line again. Thank God, Ryuunosuke didn't know how much longer he could stand to see her walking the way she was before. He guessed a dizzy wave just hit her and he didn't do anything because he knew she didn't want him to. It would have made matters worse. For her, at least.

As soon as they entered Sakurasou, Rita went to her room without saying a word.

This routine went on for an uncountable number of days. Ryuunosuke was more than worried, but he knew there was nothing he could do. For the time being, at least.

After school one day, she laid down on her bed. She looked up at her pink colored ceiling, but saw nothing but fading images and blurriness.

"Ugh..."

The palms of her hands dragged down her face. Rolling up her sleeve she looked at her blurry arm. No matter how blurry everything was, she somehow managed to clearly see the horrid thinness of her arm. It looked as if one touch could break it.

With her hair and body sprawled across her bed, she listened to the silence of her room.

The silence.. It was scaring the boy who sat behind the door. Yes, he was kneeling on the floor, facing the door, exactly like she was that one day a long time ago. He was waiting for something. For her to move, to open the door, to make even the slightest noise. But there was nothing. He gulped and turned around, so his back was against the door.

Rita instantly heard this movement and her eyes darted to her door.

"Thump" was the sound her heart rapidly made.

Someone was outside her door. She clenched her fists, hoping it wasn't the programmer she was in love with. She absolutely did not want him involved with this. She hates making him worry. But if it was him... she thought back to last year. Valentine's day. The day she was out there, sitting against the door, waiting for him to come out. Is that what he felt? She wondered in her mind. But she quickly pushed away any thought, knowing there were way more important problems that needed to be solved. Maybe she should go to a doctor... this could be a lot more serious then she thinks. She never encountered this much weight loss before, she knew it wasn't right.

Outside of the room, Ryuunosuke listened intently with his ear pressed against the wall. Every few minutes he heard the not so nice words that she said under her breath. What was she doing? What's wrong with her? Why is he just sitting here? Why was he so worried? He knew that there was definitely something wrong with Rita, and he knew he couldn't do anything about it until she told him directly. But he still remained sitting there, waiting for her to come out of her room.

She heard him. She knew it was him. She saw the black hair seep from under the door. A hand covered her face. She truly didn't like it when people worried about her. But she knew there was no helping it, with what he saw, he would obviously be worried. She doesn't want him to be worried, but she can't bring herself to tell him what's wrong with her. What if it would trigger something from his past? The guilt could kill her. And on top of that she's now disgusted with her own body, how can she even confront him? Clenching the red stone around her neck, her heart throbbed. She curled up in a ball under the covers of her bed. The lump in her throat took over and she couldn't stop the tears from coming. Tired from the dreadful events, she then drifted into a deep sleep.

He heard her soft cries, then eventually nothing. Ryuunosuke couldn't take it anymore. He stood up, and looked at her closed door. He gently knocked. No answer.

"Oi, Freeloader?", he said quietly but loud enough for her to hear.

No response.

He put his cold, shaking hand on the door knob and turned it slowly. He opened to a dark room with the curtains shunned. He saw her curled up in her bed. Sighing in relief, he walked closer. He saw her hair sprawled all over the place. He saw her eyes, closed of course, and the tear stains left on her face. He saw her blank expression. Then lastly, he saw her fingers clamped around the necklace. The necklace he gave her. He gulped down the lump in his throat. He closed his eyes and let it all sink in.

Then it hit him. He just broke into her room and invaded her privacy. That's something the typical Freeloader would have done. It's so unlike him. But even though he knew it was wrong, he couldn't get his eyes off of her. Which went horribly wrong.

Without Ryuunosuke even realizing, Rita awoken. She was frozen in shock, and she tried her best to pretend she was still sleeping. Why was he in here? She asked herself this question, along with a million others. Her heart beated for every question in her mind. She could feel his eyes on her. If this was any other time, she would be bursting with glee and love, but now... she wants him to leave. His eyes felt like bullets piercing her skin. He probably already realized what was wrong with her. The outline of her body underneath the sheets probably says it all. She felt ashamed, she promised herself she wouldn't let him know. Just another thing to make her feel terrible. She knew she shouldn't be thinking these things or acting this way. She has so many good things in her life, yet why does she feel so miserable now? She has the boy of her dreams literally watching her sleep, why doesn't she feel happy? Why can't she make herself feel happy again? These things were all very new to her. She never experienced anything like this. She felt as if she hated herself and everything around her. She doesn't know how to get rid of this sudden terrible feeling. She's dreading every second of this, but she knows she doesn't want to. If Ryuunosuke could read her mind right now, she'd be in deep trouble. She just wants to go back to that happy girl everyone knows so well. But how does she do that? Is it even possible with her conditions?

She forgot about the boy standing in her room, and she sat up.

Ryuunosuke's heart stopped as the girl beneath the covers rose. The covers now fell off of her, and the top half of her wrinkled school uniform was exposed. He looked at her face, and immediatly made contact with the two blue eyes staring right back at him.

Her face turned red. She broke the contact by turning away. Mostly because she was a little dizzy, but she was more afraid. Afraid of what he was going to say. Afraid of what their future conversation will contain.

"Um.. Rita?"

She looked him right in the eye.

"You really don't seem okay... "

He was about to put a hand on her forehead, but she quickly dodged it. He looked down at her in confusion.

"Why are you in here?", she asked quietly.

He was stunned by her words. This isn't the Rita he has know for almost a year now. What has gotten into her? He could see the agony and guilt in her eyes. He needed to find out what was wrong.

"Tell me what's wrong. "

He put both of his shaking hands on her shoulders. Her eyes widened with confusion. How could he not know already? She watched his face turn from worry to terrified when his hand started moving around her shoulder. Now he knew. His hand slid down her arm and he pushed up her sleeve. Once again, she looked away in shame. From the corner of her eye she could see his eyes shaking. She could feel the presence of his fear. She could feel his eyes scanning her body once more. She could almost hear the unsteady beating of his heart. Or maybe that was just her own.

"R-Rita..."

"Ryuunosuke.. I really don't know.."

The tears slid down her cheeks. There was no way she could hold them back any longer. She let her forehead rest against his chest, and she felt his hand on the back of her head and on her back.

"I.. I.. I don't know what to say.. Rita.."

"I'm sorry, Ryuunosuke. "

He kept quiet. She knew what was going to happen, and apologized in advance. She was right, his mind was fighting between the past and the present. His mind was being consumed by hazy memories of his mother. The memories of his mother, extremely light-weight, looking as if anything wind could push her over. The memories he thought he had gotten over. Although it took an arm and a leg, Ryuunosuke forced himself to stay strong. For Rita. He couldn't even imagine the emotions she must be dealing with now. But now he knew what was wrong with the usual bold, cheery girl he used to know. Rita probably will never be able to think of herself in the same way. He knows that her physical appearance will effect him a lot as well. Now everytime he looks at her it'll be like a visual flashback.

The weeks went on slowly. Rita didn't show any signs of improvement. Ryuunosuke, along with the other members of Sakurasou, heard her crying in her room a lot more frequently. One day, Ryuunosuke stayed up the whole night, waiting outside her door. He was waiting to here the soft cries from inside the room stop. But they never did.


	23. What Killed Us All

_Rita Ainsworth:_

 _Check-in Time: 8:00 a.m._

 _Gender- Female_

 _Age- 18_

 _Height- 163 cm_

 _Weight- 47 kg_

 _Nationality- British_

 _Diagnosis- Sickle Cell Anemia_

 _Dismissal Date- N/A_

Ryuunosuke face was covered by his hands. He slouched down in the uncomfortably familiar hospital chair. Why didn't she tell anyone she needed to go to the hospital? He could've named a thousand reasons but he still wasn't satisfied. The nurse explained to him, that early this morning, she came to the hospital. On her own. The nurse also threw in the detail of how she could barely walk. What the hell was that woman thinking! She left them with a note this morning, as they were all panicking because she was nowhere to be found. When they got to the hospital, they said she was already being examined and it would be a while before they could see her. All of the depressed members of Sakurasou sat quietly in the hospital waiting room. Ryuunosuke tried with all his might to get his mind off things, but couldn't manage to get the blonde woman out of his head. What if she wasn't okay? His long hair fell to the floor, as he leaned forward to place his head in his cupped hands. Everyone was looking down. No one dared to talk. Shiina was in tears, and Kanda had his arm around her for comfort. However, he was teary-eyed as well.

After what felt like hours, a nurse came.

"Are you all Miss Ainsworth's friends?"

They nodded quickly in fear.

"You may see her now, however, she's in pretty bad shape..."

Ryuunosuke stood up abruptly.

"What's exactly wrong with her?", he said, hiding his crackling, weak voice behind a strong, solid one.

"Well.. in simplest terms.. her blood stream is flowing very slowly.. And her number of red blood cells is very low. If this keeps up, the heart will be affected greatly.."

Ryuunosuke stood frozen. His eyes widened and he couldn't feel a muscle in his body. All he could feel was the shakiness and fear rumbling inside him. He had to clench his mouth shut to stop it from hanging open.

"Sir? ", he heard from a distance.

Ryuunosuke was completely zoned out. His mind ran threw what the nurse just said, yet he still couldn't believe it. Her heart..

"Sir?" He heard again.

Suddenly, he felt a cold hand on his shoulder.

"Akasaka.."

He heard the soft male voice. Turning around, the brown hair boy looked him straight in the eye.

"K-Kanda... "

The programmer felt his warm tears fall down his cheeks. He took a deep breath and drew his attention back to the nurse.

" Sir, if you want to see her.. "

Ryuunosuke cut her off by leaving right away. He ran down the hall, already knowing what room she was in. He stopped at the door, taking a deep breath. Slowly opening the door, he looked inside. It was all dark, the curtains were shunned. He could already feel the depressing aura and he wasn't even inside the room yet.

The light from the hallway shone into the room. He saw a quick glance of the girl on the bed with the small sliver of light shining

directly on her. Once he was inside, he closed the door behind him, leaving only himself and Rita in the dark room. He immediately noticed she was in a deep sleep. But the tears started coming even harder when he took several steps toward her. He noticed the IV hooked up, the heart monitor, and the oxygen hooked around her head. He has seen her like this before, but why does this time feel so much worse? Her not so blonde hair spread around her, the heavy circles under her closed eyes, the what seemed to be everlasting frailness of her body. Ryuunosuke, not being able to take it anymore, fell to his knees. Kneeling on the floor, he cried into his hands.

Why couldn't he do anything right?

Why didn't she tell him?

Why couldn't he take care of her?

Why does he feel so helpless?

Why did this have to happen to her?

Why did this have to happen to him!?

He stood up and banged his fists against the wall. The pain he was feeling, it was like no other.

Why did he have this awful feeling in his heart?

He already knew the answer to this reappearing question.

He loved her.

He knew it all along, just always pushed it away. He was afraid to love her, for the reasons he was crying about now. He knew he'd be an emotional mess if anything ever happened to her. But this didn't change the feeling in his heart.

He loved her so fucking much.

But now the feeling of love is replaced with this terrible pain. A pain that he cannot push away. He can't hide this particular emotion like he normally does with all his other emotions. And he never will be able to.

Sitting in the what felt like empty room, Ryuunosuke listened to his own sobbing and the quick, short breaths of the woman in the hospital gown. He knew that he had to stay quiet, definitely not wanting to wake her now. But it was too late.

She was awake, and she was listening to his quiet sobs. With her eyes remaining closed, she knew it was him. And she knew he was sitting in the chair furthest away from her. His cries felt like needles piercing her body. She couldn't help but blame herself. She gulped down the lump in her throat.

As soon as she opened her eyes, she felt a pair of dark eyes pierce her. She heard his footsteps dash toward her.

"Rita... ", is all the boy said while he looked down at her, the tears coming harder than ever before..

"Listen to me, Ryuunosuke", she said quietly but seriously.

"Everything's going to be okay", she stated, trying to meet his stare.

"Are you kidding me Rita? Everything is the opposite of okay! How can it be alright if.. if you're dying!", Ryuunosuke practically screamed.

Rita looked the other way, having nothing else to say. He was right. And there was nothing she could do to comfort him.

With this, Ryuunosuke stormed out of the room.


	24. Saving A Life

**Me: I'm sorry I haven't updated in like forever!**

 **Kanda: WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN**

 **Ryuunosuke: Everyone is waiting for you to continue the story!**

 **Me: I-I-I was hibernating!**

 **Rita: ...**

 **Ryuunosuke: ...**

 **Kanda: ...**

 **Nanami: ...**

 **Shiina: ...**

 **Misaki: What are you, a bear?**  
 **Me: Maybee *makes growling noises***

 **Misaki: AHHH nuuu! Jin, save me, Erica-chan is a bear!**

 **Jin: *facepalm***

 **Me: Oh by the way everyone, THIS IS NOT THE LAST CHAPTER. There's more I swear. And sorry for the crappy writing, I'm still in the process of waking up. But enjoy this chapter, I love you all!**

Ryuunosuke didn't talk to anyone for the next week. Even when his precious AI would repeatedly question his silence, not a single word comes out of him. He completely disconnected himself from everyone around him... especially Rita. He knew if he approached her once more he would flip on her again. He felt like he didn't deserve to see her. It would just make both of them emotionally worse.

But Rita felt differently. She yelled at herself everyday for saying what she did to Ryuunosuke. Her words were like a trigger. All Rita wanted to do was talk to him. She wanted to run away from the hospital and go back to Sakurasou. She wanted to see him. No, for the sake of her sanity, she needed to see him.

She looked out the window and let the pouring rain wash her dreadful emotions away. She feels empty inside, a feeling she has never felt before. She has a piercing guilt of driving Ryuunosuke away. She knew all along that he will only end up hurt. But no, she just had to tell him that she will live for him. Because she loves him. Of course, if that was the case she would be the healthiest person alive but everyone knows that physical feelings and emotions can't intersect. Her love for him can't make her healthy. She is starting to believe that her love for him is just making everything worse. She is starting to believe a lot of things, a lot of which she doesn't want to ever think again.

Her thoughts were cut off when a figure appeared in the door. She whipped around and saw the dark figure. Without the lights on, she could tell it was her old roommate, Shiina Mashiro. The lights flicked on and Rita confirmed her guess.

"Rita..."

Rita kept quiet as she noticed how hard the girl was crying. Shiina ran towards her with her arms spread. Rita embraced her gently, trying as hard as she can to comfort her friend, although it was hard to be comforting at such a state.

"I-I'm sorry Shiina.."

Shiina broke the hug and her watery eyes shone right through Rita. Rita could see that Shiina was utterly in shock from all that has happened to her. Rita knew she must have felt betrayed. For as long as they have known each other, she never said a thing about her possibly life-threatening disease. Looking into Shiina's eyes, she just couldn't find the right words to say.

"I..I can't stand the thought of making you all so sad.. I just..."

The two girls hugged and cried for awhile, Rita didn't even notice the brown-haired boy appearing from the hallway. Nor the rest of Sakurasou that followed.

After a few moments however, Rita did lift her eyes to see everyone standing at the doorway. She didn't want to see them, she was purely afraid. Their pity made her feel worthless. She didn't want them to see her at her worst. The more they see her weak, the harder it would be for them to treat her like they did before. They were all crying and she hated it. She was the cause of their tears and that's just something she doesn't want to live with. And she could do nothing about it. Absolutely nothing. However, masking her distress, she tried to act positive and lighten up the mood.

She slipped out of Shiina's tight embrace and put on a smile.

"R-Rita..." , Kanda said unconfidently.

Rita's blue eyes showed compassion and gentleness.

He approached her with something in his hand. He extended his arm and handed her an envelope. Her fake smile converted to a real one, as she lifted the corner exposing the lightly adorned card. She opened it and discovered that it was filled with individual messages from each of them. The blonde began to tear up, which made it hard to read their generous and heartwarming words. She wiped her eyes and looked at the small group.

"T-Thank you guys so much... you really don't know how much it means to me..."

She put her hand on her heart and hung her head, "I am so happy that I have such good friends.."

"It's our pleasure, really. We all love you Rita, and we want you to know that." Aoyama said, stepping closer to her.

They all spent the next hour talking and hugging. But finally, the urging question that Rita had in her mind escaped.

"H-How is Ryuunosuke?"

Everyone looked around the room, all shaking their heads and looking down in despair.

"He hasn't come out of his room yet.. not even for food.." Kanda said quietly under his breath.

Rita felt the lump in her throat grow, the tears beginning to build up, and the pain in her heart triple in size.

"Please.. Kanda please check on him..."

"Absolutely."

She looked out the window and watched the rain fall. She is never going to stop blaming herself for this. They need to talk.

"Go now... "

Kanda, who was trembling at how depressed she looked, quickly grabbed his bag and signaled the other's to follow him.

She must've stared out that window for hours.

When the group arrived at Sakurasou, they immediately saw the black-haired boy in the kitchen, eating a tomato.

"Ryuunosuke!" They called out, hurrying toward him.

He walked past them without saying a word, and headed out the door.

Misaki went to chase after him, but Kanda held her back.

"Let him go."

A thorough silence was brought upon all of them.

Ryuunosuke was heading to the hospital. He could barely stand from his uncontrollable shaking. His knees felt weak and he had a terrible feeling in his stomach. However, the feeling in his stomach was nothing compared to what was in his heart. With it only being a week, he missed her so much. It was unbearable, and this scared him.

But he is only going to the hospital to talk to the nurses. Just to see how she is doing. He still feels like he doesn't deserve to see her, and he doesn't know how to approach her now. He doesn't want to make her anymore upset, so he has to stay away. That's the only answer.

"How can we help you sir? ", the woman at the desk asked.

"I would like to speak with Doctor Koniki, Rita Ainsworth's doctor."

"Okay, he'll be out in a minute. ".  
The programmer took a seat in the waiting room. He anxiously fidgeted around in his chair, tying to be as patient as possible. It was hard though, because the longer he waited, the longer he had to think of all of his worries. The more he thinks the sadder he gets.

"Mr. Akasaka?"

He heard a man's voice, and saw a hand waving in front of his face. Jumping back into reality, he quickly stood up.

"Hello Dr. Koniki, I-I wanted to know how Rita was doing.. "

The doctor signalled Ryuunosuke to follow as he made his way into his office. Once they were in, they both took a seat with a a table in between them. Then, the doctor immediately blurted out,

"She's not doing well."

His black eyes perked up at the words.

"W-What do you mean? This.. This will just pass like the others right? "

He closed his eyes and shook his head.

" We don't think she'll make it thr-"

Broken, Ryuunosuke aggressively stood up, slamming his hands on the table, and cutting the doctor off.

"She's going to make it! Don't you dare say that she won't! She.. She will! S-She promised.. "

"Mr. Akasaka... Promises can't change the future.."

The tears dripped from his sullen face. He was angry at this obvious truth that he has been convincing himself false since this happened. It took awhile before he got all of his thoughts back in order and revert to this unreal reality.

"I-Isn't there anything... anything you can do?"

Mr. Koniki looked at the torn apart boy. He knew that he must've had a deep connection with Rita. He knew that boy was willing to do anything for her.

There was actually one option for saving the life of Rita Ainsworth.

As soon as he started explaining, Ryuunosuke eyes widened. This idea.. it could work. It could save her life.

Little by little, Ryuunosuke's mind was filled with hope. That hope soon hit a stop when the doctor cane across the last part of his plan.

"... Rita's blood type is extremely rare, we won't be able to carry it out without the same blood...and if we can't find the right person soon it'll be too late. "

The awful feeling in his stomach sunk back in. The feeling of depression crashed on him like a tidal wave. But still feeling somewhat hopeful, his programmed brain scanned for solutions. Then he remembered something.

"Rita's blood type.. It's the type that's most likely to get anemia.. right?"

"Y-Yes.. you're correct. "

With his hands on the table and his body leaned forward, Ryuunosuke looked directly into the doctor's eyes.

"My mother had anemia. If she carried that blood type then there's a possibility that I... "

He didn't finish the sentence because his mind was drifting in thought. Mr. Koniki was also pondering the chances. Then it struck him, if this boy happened to have the same blood type, was he seriously considering going through with this? That level of dedication, that level of love, was unreal.

"There is a likely possibility.. But Mr. Akasaka, let me get this straight, are you actually willing to go through with a heart transplant?"


	25. Final Words

"... Are you actually willing to go through with a heart transplant?"

Without hesitation, Ryuunosuke's mind pushed forward yes, but a question was stopping him. Is he really going to give his life to her?

Yes.

Definitely.

Even if it might not cure Rita, it was worth a shot. He wanted her to live. He wants her to be able to experience the rest of her life. And he would give his life for that wish.

"Yes, Doctor. I'd be happy to."

Dr. Koniki's jaw dropped. He could see the determination in Ryuunosuke's eyes. This was incredible, he has never seen a boy like this before.

"The first thing w-we'd have to do is a blood test.. to see if you have the rare blood type that Miss Ainsworth possesses. "

Ryuunosuke nodded calmly.

In a matter of time, he was sitting in a hospital chair patiently waiting for the doctor to return. His mind resorted back to reality and everything started to hit him. If this test is successful, he is going to give up his life. But for some reason, it didn't bother him at all. He didn't feel any sort of hesitiation, not one second thought. It was strange, any normal person would have to sit down and think about this. Ryuunosuke knew his determination was special.

"Mr. Akasaka... your test is positive. You and Miss Ainsworth miraculously have the same blood type. "

Ryuunosuke smiled, "That means we can go through with the operation, right?"

"Y-Yes... if you're certain about it.."

"I'm certain."

"Well Mr. Akasaka.. shall I inform Miss Ainsworth?"

He let the doctors words swim through his mind. That's the one thing he didn't think about. How she would feel about this. He already knew she isn't going to like it. But Ryuunosuke knew it was the right thing to do.

She looked into the empty room surrounding her. She felt empty inside, the feeling of death was controlling her body. She knew she was going to die soon. And Ryuunosuke won't even talk to her. What was she supposed to do? Just die this unhappy? All she wants to do is see him.. That is her only wish. She can't just leave him. He'll suffer, and Rita doesn't want that. Her thoughts were thrown off by the door creaking. She saw the familiar white coat of the doctor flash by, and the feeling of despair already hit her. Her whole life was surrounded by doctors and hospitals, and now, anything related to health made her automatically upset.

"Hello, Miss Ainsworth. How are you feeling today?"

Rita hesitated, she was in no mood for small talk.

"Same as yesterday, I guess."

Rita intensely stared at him as he pulled up a chair and sat next to the hospital bed. From the look on her doctor's face, this couldn't be good news. Sighing, she closed her eyes and prepared herself for the worse.

"So... there's a person that wants to be a donor.."

Rita opened her gleaming blue eyes quickly.

"A donor?"

"Yes.. they want to donate their heart.. so you can go through with a heart transplant."

"But my blood type..."

She blinked a few times then an awful predication popped in her mind.

"No..No...It couldn't be.."

She hung her head low and her eyes widened.

"No..."

"Excuse me Miss... The young man who is willing to do this is Mr. Aka-"

"No!"

The doctor noticed her hands shaking and the streams of tears leaving her eyes.

"He... he can't..", she stuttered with her words.

In the corner of her watery eyes, she saw a familiar silhouette appear from around the door.

Black hair, dark clothes, and raven eyes. The name screamed in her mind.

The teenage boy nodded at the doctor, signaling for R. Koniki to leave. Then, after over a week, Rita and Ryuunosuke were face to face once again.

"Hello Rita."

His voice, the one she has missed for so long, echoed through her ears, causing the tears to become more heavy. His voice was at a grimacing pitch.

"R-Ryuunosuke... W-What do you think you're doing,, You c-can't..."

"I am. "

"No!"

She screamed loudly, startling Ryuunosuke.

"You can't give up your life for me! You deserve to live much more than I do! You mean everything to me, I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I was the reason you were to die! You c-can't... I-I won't let you.."

Her head fell into the palms of her hands, covering her tear-stained face.

"Rita, I must do this. I can't lose you. I can't just sit here and watch you suffer. I'm willing to do anything, even if it'll cost me my life."

He took a few steps closer to her.

"God dammit Ryuunosuke! My life will still be terrible if you went through with this. Nothing will be better! Everything will be worse! Y-You're the only reason I want to live... Don't take that away from me!"

Her voice shook with every word she spoke.

"Rita... you're going to live..."

Ryuunosuke hesitated before stepping any closer. She cried loudly and desperately, but it didn't make him second guess his choice. He approached her bed, and put his hand on hers.

"Rita.. I'm giving my life to you. I want you to live. I'll die happy."

She didn't respond. He removed his hand slowly and began to walk away. Her voice made him stop.

"I-Is this goodbye?"

"Y-Yeah."

She tried to swallow the tears, but there was no hope.

"I'll kill myself."

He approached her side again, and spoke in a low, hushed voiced.

"Don't. Rita, you are going to live for me. You will live the life you deserve."

Her hand reached out to grab him, but he left to quick.

"I love you, Rita."

He walked out the door. He was gone.

 **Me: Well that's it.**

 **Everyone: Huh? What? Nuu.**

 **Misaki: Y u do dis to me Erica-chan.**

 **Ryuunosuke: Erica you said it would have a happy ending!**

 **Me: Haha I lied.**

 **Rita: UM PLEASE DON'T LIE. LYING IS BAD. LYING IS NO GOOD. BRING RYUU BACK.**

 **Ryuunosuke: F-Freeloader? I-I'm right here. It was just a stupid story that Erica-chan made up.**

 **Me: You calling it stupid bro? Bro I can kill you twice.**

 **Everyone: NUUUUU**

 **Misaki: Why dah endin soi sad doe. Why doe. Why.**

 **Me: Well I was thinking about doing an epilogue or maybe an alternative ending...**

 **Rita: A-Alternative ending?**

 **Ryuuosuke: An ending where I don't die?**

 **Me: Yeah maybe I can kill Rita instead. :)**

 **Everyone: NO**

 **Me: Well how about a vote. Do you guys want an Epilogue where it shows Rita in a few years or an Alternatie Ending where Rita dies instead of Dragon. Or maybe an Alternative Ending where no one dies and they just live happily ever after?**

 **Rita: I like the last one..**

 **Ryuunosuke: Happiness would be pretty good for once, ERICA.**

 **Me: Nahh I think Dragon over here just wants to make little Dragon babies with Ritaaa**

 **Ryuunosuke: EHHH? I didn't say that BAKA.**

 **Jin: We all know what you're thinking Akasaka... (shoves him into Rita)**

 **Rita: (giggles)**

 **Misaki: One last Ryuuri power?**

 **Me: (nods)**

 **Everyone: (pumps fist in air) RYUURI POWER!**

 **Me: Remember to vote in the comments! Sayonara!**


	26. What Might of Been (Alternative Ending)

**Me: Hello everyoneeeee this is the ALTERNATIVE ENDING that won the vote. Enjoy all the RyuuRi fluff!**

 _It has been 4 years since Rita has had her life-saving surgery. She is almost completely done healing, and she couldn't be happier. Of course, Ryuunosuke was twice as happy and then some. Ryuunosuke confessed his love right before her surgery, and they gloriously reunited when Rita returned. The two then started dating and fell deeply in love. After high school, they moved in together. Ryuunosuke's gynophobia is completely gone. He is now quite the romantic and protective over his gorgeous girlfriend. On this very night, they were going star gazing. But Ryuunosuke had a little more planned..._

She was wearing a cute pink t-shirt and skinny jeans, with her wavy, blonde hair up in a ponytail. Ryuunosuke wore his normal overalls over a t-shirt. It very much seemed like a normal night. There was quite a hill to get up to the spot. Rita was ecstatic, she always dreamed of doing things like this with him. Just little things that couples do, she never thought her dreams could be so fulfilled. She was practically running to the spot, with Ryuunosuke lagging behind her.

"Outta breath already Ryuu Ryuu?"

He rolled his eyes and managed to catch up to his girl.

"Still hanging on to that nickname, Freeloader?"

"Still sarcastic as ever, Mr. Tsundere?"

"I'm not a tsundere!", Ryuunosuke exclaimed.

"Mmm yes you are..." , Rita said while leaning in to him. He glared down at her but acceptingly put his hands around her waist. She looked up at him with her big blue eyes and a perfect, gleaming smile spread across her face.

"Who hates women now?"

"Oh shush it.." He responded while placing a kiss on her forehead. She giggled at his absolute cuteness and her cheeks turned rosy. She hurried along, grabbing his hand.

"C'mon Ryuu Ryuu! I wanna spend all night here!"

"You're letting your English dialect slip again..."

Her eyes gave a funny stare, "Gotta problem with that, Ryuu-no-su-ke?"

"Nope, not at all. I actually find it quite cute." He said with a side smile, glancing at her.

"Awhh stawp it you..."

Hand in hand, they arrived at the beautiful spot that Ryuunosuke picked out.

"It's... beautiful!" Rita lit up with even more excitement.

"Sure is." Ryuunosuke said while staring directly at Rita.

Seeing him in the corner of her eye, she quickly replied with, "Just come here..."

She pulled him in by his overall straps and kissed his oh so familiar lips.

Her heart beat so fast, like it does every time she is with him.

His heart beat so fast, like it does every time he is with her.

Their lips moved in sync, with his hand sliding to her back and pulling her closer. Her hands caressed his chest and then trickled down his luscious hair. Ryuunosuke's hands moved along the curves of her waist and gripped her shirt gently. They both opened their eyes at the same time, which caused them to automatically smile, ending the passionate kiss. Rita giggled, while Ryuunosuke looked deeply into her eyes. He blushed, knowing the depths of her eyes and their absolute beauty. It was dark, so her eyes glistened in the moonlight.

"Let's get the blanket laid out" , she said expressing a devious smirk.

Ryuunosuke took off his backpack and opened it. They brought along Rita's favorite green blanket. It really was Rita's FAVORITE, she could never sleep without it.

When the blanket was all set, Rita sprawled across it, reuniting with her favorite piece of fabric. Ryuunosuke laid down next to her and put an arm around her. She snuggled into his shoulder and had the happiest smile.

Laying down, they both looked up into the night sky.

"There's so many stars...". Rita proclaimed in awe.

Ryuunosuke pointed to something in the sky.

"Look, a shooting star! Make a wish"

Rita smiled, "My wish already came true. I have all that I have ever wanted."

Her eyes remained staring at the sky. Her voice was soft and gentle. Ryuunosuke understood what her words meant and his heartbeat got even faster. He loved Rita so much. He used to think the word soulmates was overrated, but now he can't get that word out of his mind.

"Soulmates, eh?"

Ryuunosuke's face turned bright red and he looked at her.

"H-How?"

"You mouthed the word when you were thinking about it, silly."

Ryuunosuke growled at himself. Then, he remembered his original intention and knew this was the perfect time.

Right after some tickling.

"Ah! R-Ryuunosuke!" She squealed and quickly got taken over by giggles.

Only Ryuunosuke knew this, but Rita was extremely ticklish.

"Ryuu Ryuu! Stawwwwpp", she managed to say while uncontrollably laughing.

"This is what you get for stalking my lips!"

"I can't help it... they are just so tempting ya know?" She quickly went in for a kiss and the butterflies erupted in his stomach.

It was a little kiss, and afterwards Ryuunosuke got back to business

"So.. do you think we are s-soulmates?"

Rita smiled and tilted her head. "Of course!"

He felt his cheeks heat up and breath got quicker. He has to remain calm though. He has to play this off cool. He sat up and let the moonlight deliver his silhouette. Rita could sense a more serious aura. Ryuunosuke stared into the night sky, and after what seemed like forever, he begun.

"I.. I know we are soulmates. Rita, my life has changed since the day I met you. We have been through so much together, it's almost unbelievable. It was so scary, but you were always by my side. You always said such comforting words, never failed to give me the love I needed. The one thing I will never forget is when you said that you'll never die because you love me too much... W-Well I guess that really was true then.."

He felt himself tear up, but he smiled and quickly wiped his eye. He noticed Rita's surprised face and her hand clenching her red necklace above her heart. He continued.

"You put happiness in my life. I used to be gynophobic, and absolutely hated women. I never thought I would fall in love, but damn, I was so wrong. You really changed my life, Rita. I developed such a deep connection with you, I didn't even realize it. I loved you for a long time but I was so scared to admit it. Now, I'm ready to spend the rest of my life with you. I love you, Rita."

And with that, he dug into his overall pocket and grabbed the small box. Rita covered her open mouth with her hands, and felt the tears run down her cheeks. With the box in her view, Ryuunosuke opened it and exposed the beautiful diamond ring.

"Rita Ainsworth... W-Will you marry me?"

Her jaw-dropped expression quickly turned into an overwhelming smile. She looked into Ryuunosuke's eyes with that perfect smile of hers.

"O-Of c-course", she barely managed to say.

Ryuunosuke, extremely proud of himself, took the ring out and graciously slid it onto Rita's left finger. Her teary blue eyes shimmered in the moonlight. She raised her shaking hand in front of her, staring at the ring that would lock their future.

"R-Ryuunosuke..." She latched herself onto him and he held her tightly.

"I-It's so beautiful.. ", she said in his embrace.

Ryuunosuke whispered, "Just like you."

 **Me: So there we have the story of Mr. and Mrs. Akasaka.**

 **Rita: THAT WAS SOO BEAUTIFULLL *grabs the tissues***

 **Misaki: OH MY GOSH ERICA-CHAN THANK YOU FOR THE HAPPY FEELS FOR ONCEEEE**

 **Me: Hehe I died a little writing this :3**

 **Ryuunosuke: ...**

 **Kanda: Ah Ryuunosuke.. This'll be a reality for you some day.**

 **Ryuunosuke: *hangs head low***

 **Rita: Aw cheer up Ryuu Ryuu *runs and kisses him***

 **Ryuunosuke: *turns red but surprisingly kisses back***

 **Shiina: Love. *points***

 **Ryuunosuke: *gets away from the kiss* I-I just.. Wanted to know what it felt like.. T-That's all..**

 **Jin: Did you enjoy it** ** _Ryuu Ryuu._**

 **Ryuunosuke: *really embarrassed* I-I.. I'm going to my room!**

 **Rita: R-Ryuunosuke? *pulls his shirt and looks up at him with puppy eyes***

 **Ryuunosuke: *blushes* I-I guess you can come with me. *grabs her wrist and leads her***

 **Nanami: Awww! He's really growing up!**

 **Jin: *smirks***

 **Misaki: FLUFFINESS OVERLOAAAAADDD**

 **Kanda: AAHHHH**

 **Nanami: AHHHHH**

 **Jin: AHHHHH**

 **Shiina: *emotionless***

 **Misaki: One more time everyone... Ryuuri power!**

 **Everyone: *pumps fist in air* RYUURI POWER!**

 **Me: Thank you to everyone who read this story to the end, it makes me so happy! I also very much appreciate all the loving comments! I have many ideas for more stories, and yes some will include DRAGON BABIESSSS! I certainly can't wait and I'll see you all soon! Leave in the comments some of your favorite scenes/chapters and things that you really enjoyed in this book! I'll even answer some questions! Thank you so much for your time, and don't forget... Ryuuri power!**


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